JoAnn Prause

Underemployment and depression: longitudinal relationships.

We conceptualize employment status not as a dichotomy of working versus not working but as a continuum ranging from adequate employment to inadequate employment (involuntary part-time or low wage) to unemployment. Will shifts from adequate to inadequate employment increase depression as do shifts from employment to unemployment, and to what extent does prior depression select workers into such adverse employment change? We analyze panel data from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth for the years 1992-1994 for the 5,113 respondents who were adequately employed in 1992. Controlling for prior depression, both types of adverse employment change resulted in similar, significant increases in depression. These direct effects persisted despite inclusion of such potential mediators as changes in income, job satisfaction, and marital status. Marital status buffered the depressive effect of both types of adverse change, but education and job dissatisfaction amplified the effect of unemployment on depression. Prior depression did not predict higher risk of becoming inadequately employed but did predict increased risk of unemployment, particularly for those with less education. These results confirm that both unemployment and inadequate employment affect mental health, and they invite greater efforts to monitor the extent and impact of underemployment.

Maternal employment and children's achievement in context: a meta-analysis of four decades of research

This meta-analysis of 68 studies (770 effect sizes) used random effects models to examine whether childrens achievement differed depending on whether their mothers were employed. Four achievement outcomes were emphasized: formal tests of achievement and intellectual functioning, grades, and teacher ratings of cognitive competence. When all employment was compared with nonemployment for combined and separate achievement outcomes without moderators, effects were nonsignificant. Small beneficial effects of part-time compared with full-time employment were apparent for all achievement outcomes combined and for each individual achievement outcome. Significant sample-level moderators of the associations between maternal employment and achievement for all outcomes combined included family structure, race/ethnicity, and socioeconomic status; associations were positive when samples were majority 1-parent families and mixed 1- and 2-parent families, racially/ethnically diverse or international in composition, and not middle-upper class. Analyses of child gender indicated more positive effects for girls. Childrens age was a significant moderator for the outcome of intellectual functioning. The identification of sample-level moderators of the relationship between maternal employment and childrens achievement highlights the importance of social context in understanding work-family linkages.

Maternal work early in the lives of children and its distal associations with achievement and behavior problems: A meta-analysis

This meta-analysis of 69 studies (1,483 effect sizes) used random effects models to examine maternal employment during infancy/early childhood in relation to 2 major domains of child functioning: achievement and behavior problems. Analyses of studies that spanned 5 decades indicated that, with a few exceptions, early employment was not significantly associated with later achievement or internalizing/externalizing behaviors. The exceptions were for teacher ratings of achievement and internalizing behaviors: Employment was associated with higher achievement and fewer internalizing behaviors. Substantial heterogeneity among the effect sizes prompted examination of moderators. Sample-level moderator analyses pointed to the importance of socioeconomic and contextual variables, with early employment most beneficial when families were challenged by single parenthood or welfare status. Maternal employment during Years 2 and 3 was associated with higher achievement. Some moderator analyses indicated negative effects of employment for middle-class and 2-parent families and for very early employment (childs first year). Associations also differed depending on whether effect sizes were adjusted for contextual variables. Only 1 study-level moderator (sex of first author) was significant after adjusting for other moderators. The small effect size and primarily nonsignificant results for main effects of early maternal employment should allay concerns about mothers working when children are young. However, negative findings associated with employment during the childs first year are compatible with calls for more generous maternal leave policies. Results highlight the importance of social context for identifying under which conditions and for which subgroups early maternal employment is associated with positive or negative child outcomes.

Substance use after residential treatment among individuals with co-occurring disorders: the role of anxiety/depressive symptoms and trauma exposure.

This longitudinal study examined the contribution of anxiety/depressive symptoms and lifetime and recent trauma exposure to substance use after residential substance abuse treatment among individuals with co-occurring disorders. Data were collected from adults at treatment entry and 6 and 12 months later. At treatment entry, nearly all participants reported lifetime trauma exposure, and over one third met criteria for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Over the follow-up, nearly one third of the participants were exposed to trauma. Lifetime trauma exposure and a diagnosis of PTSD at treatment entry were not associated with substance use over the follow-up. Trauma exposure and anxiety/depressive symptoms over the follow-up were associated with an increased likelihood of substance use. Gender did not moderate the association between trauma exposure and anxiety/depressive symptoms and substance use. These findings highlight the importance of monitoring for trauma exposure and symptoms of anxiety/depression to better target interventions and continuing care approaches to reduce the likelihood of posttreatment substance use in this population.

Favourable employment status change and psychological depression : A two-year follow-up analysis of the national longitudinal survey of youth

This study examines the relationship between favourable employment change and well-being. Using the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth, respondents who were inadequately employed (i.e. unemployed or underemployed, N= 1,160) in 1992 were followed up in 1994. Results suggest that among the unemployed in 1992 (time-1), higher depression at time-1 was significantly associated with decreased odds of both adequate employment and underemployment relative to unemployment at time-2 (1994). Among the underemployed at time-1, gender moderated the relationship between time-1 depression and employment at time-2. The odds of employment (both adequate and underemployment) were higher for males than females at lower levels of depression, but this gender advantage fell as depression increased. Additional analyses revealed that any employment at time-2 relative to unemployment was significantly associated with lower depression in 1994 when controlling for time-1 depression and other important background variables. Neither time-1 status (unemployment versus underemployment) nor type of time-2 employment (adequate versus underemployment) were significantly associated with later depression. Cette e´tude porte sur la relation entre un changement d’emploi positif et la sante´. A partir de l’enquete longitudinale nationale sur la jeunesse, des personnes qui avaient des proble`mes d’emploi en 1992 (au chomage ou sous-employe´es, N= 1,160) ont e´te´ recontacte´es en 1994. Les re´sultats montrent que chez les chomeurs de 1992 (T1), une forte de´pression a` cette e´poque e´tait significativement relie´e a` un plus grand risque de se retrouver chomeur en 1994 (T2), plutot qu’employe´ correctement ou sous-employe´. Chez les sous-employe´s de T1, le sexe influenc¸ait la relation entre la de´pression a` T1 et l’emploi a` T2. La probabilite´ d’avoir un emploi (correct ou insuffisant) e´tait supe´rieure chez les hommes pour les de´pressions le´ge`res, mais cet avantage lie´ au sexe chutait quand la de´pression s’aggravait. Des analyses comple´mentaires ont re´ve´le´ que tout emploi a` T2 e´tait significativement corre´le´ a` moins de de´pression a` ce moment quand on controlait pour T1 la de´pression et d’autres variables sociales importantes. Ni le statut a` T1 (chomage–sous-emploi), ni le type d’emploi a` T2 (emploi correct–sous-emploi) n’e´taient significativement relie´s a` la de´pression a` T2.

Effect of Favorable Employment Change on Alcohol Abuse: One- and Five-Year Follow-Ups in the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth

Job loss has been linked to adverse outcomes such as alcohol abuse, but improved employment, usually assumed to be beneficial, has seldom been evaluated and may not help with addictive disorders. Using the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth, young adults who were unemployed or underemployed (low income or involuntary part-time) in 1984 were followed up in 1985 and 1989. Controlling for 1984 alcohol abuse, there were no effects of positive employment change on 1985 symptoms, but there were significant restorative effects on 1985 binge drinking among those who were heavy drinkers in 1984. There also appeared to be an indirect link of favorable 1984–1985 employment change to heavy drinking in 1989 via 1989 employment status. Because the effects of underemployment partially resembled those of unemployment, the discussion cautions against the conventional wisdom of promoting any work, including underemployment, as curative for the ills of unemployment.

Birth Weight and Mothers' Adverse Employment Change∗

Low birth weight has been linked at the aggregate level to unemployment rates and at the individual level to subjective distress. We hypothesize that maternal underemployment, including unemployment, involuntary part-time work, and low wage work predicts decreased birth weight. The relationship of birth weight to maternal employment changes during pregnancy was studied prospectively in 1,165 singleton first births in the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth data set. Controlling for other significant risk factors, women who shifted from adequate employment to underemployment had significantly lighter babies. Plausible mediators of this relationship were explored, including prenatal health care, gestational age, and mothers weight gain, with results varying by type of underemployment. Two interactions also suggested that underemployment reduced the beneficial effect of mothers weight gain on birth weight. These findings were partially replicated for low birth weight (< 2,500 grams), indicating the medical significance of the effect.

Alcohol Drinking Onset: A Reliability Study

ABSTRACT Early alcohol drinking onset (ADO) is associated with adult alcohol misuse, but the accuracy of ADO is unclear. Reliability of self-reported ADO was studied in two panels of the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth. For the Adult sample (n = 6,215), the intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) was .36. Older respondents had higher reliabilities and reported later ADO than younger ones. In the Child/ Young Adult sample, reliability varied from .19 for children 11 and 13 years old to .29 for children 12 and 14 years old. These low reliabilities and the age effect in reported ADO may affect epidemiologic research and interventions using this variable.

DISCRETIONARY PAROLE RELEASE: LENGTH OF IMPRISONMENT, PERCENT OF SENTENCE SERVED, AND RECIDIVISM

ABSTRACT Mandatory release has become the dominant prison release mechanism over the last two decades, as states and the federal system moved away from the practice of discretionaly release towards “tough-on-crime” sentencing laws. However, little research has examined the impact of discretionaiy versus mandatory prison release on ofenders’ length of imprisonment, percent of imposed sentence served, and recidivism during parole. Using national data fiom the Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) National Corrections Reporting Program (NCRP), this study examines the extent to which discretionary versus mandatory release impacts length of actual prison time served, time served as a percent of sentence imposed, and successful completion of parole supervision. This analysis indicates that for almost every offense, especiallj violent crimes, those released discretionarily sewed longer prison terms and were about twice as likely to successfully complete parole supervision than those released mandatorily. While those released mandatorily served a greater percent of their imposed sentence, they served less actual time in prison than those released discretionarily.

The Social Costs of Underemployment: Settling Down: Psychological Depression and Underemployment

We have slowly come to realize that periodical idleness as well as the payment of wages insufficient for maintenance of the manual worker in full industrial and domestic efficiency stand economically on the same footing with the ‘sweated’ industries, the overwork of women, and employment of children. But of all the aspects of social misery nothing is so heart-breaking as unemployment, … Jane Addams, 1910, pp. 220–221 INTRODUCTION Background Depression and Stress . According to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of the American Psychiatric Association (1994) (DSM-IV), major depressive disorder is characterized by at least one two-week long episode of depressed mood accompanied by at least four additional symptoms, such as feelings of worthlessness and recurrent thoughts of death or suicide. Psychological depression is a major public mental health problem affecting approximately 17 million Americans each year (Jacobs, Kopans, & Reizes, 1995). The lifetime prevalence of major depression has been estimated in the range of 10% to 25% for women and 5% to 12% for men with the point prevalence estimated in the range of 5% to 9% for women and 2% to 3% for men (American Psychiatric Association, 1994). This disorder can appear at any age, but the average age at onset is the mid-twenties, near the beginning of the age range of the NLSY respondents in 1992. This is a recurring disorder, with half or more of those individuals with major depressive disorder expected to have a second episode.