Silvia Meggiolaro

Factors related to disability: Evidence from the " Treviso Longeva (TRELONG) Study"

Prolongation of life is an important public health goal as long as there is an emphasis on the quality of life (QoL) and independent living. Diminishing abilities to ambulate and participate in activities of daily living point to a serious decline in functional health, increasing the risk of institutionalization and death. In our work we found a pattern of factors associated with disability, especially cognitive impairment, as well as stroke, physical activity and performance, reading, and the nutritional biomarkers, blood albumin and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C). The attention to this cluster of markers, suggesting multidimensional prevention, may have unexpected good effects against disability.

A multilevel competing risks model for analysis of university students’ careers in Italy

This paper examines individual and institutional characteristics which may influence the outcomes of university students’ careers. Withdrawals, course changes, delays and graduations of students enrolled in first-cycle degree courses in a large public university in Italy are examined. Individual longitudinal data from administrative archives were used, taking into account both the temporal dimension and the organisational and structural characteristics of the degree courses. Results indicate that the profile of a successful student is defined by both socio-demographic factors and pre-university educational experience. At course level, restricted access to courses, study fields and course size were important for students’ university careers.

Life satisfaction among older people in Italy in a gender approach

ABSTRACT Over the last few decades, increasing attention has been paid to the issue of wellbeing among older people, and life satisfaction has been used as an indicator to evaluate older peoples life conditions. This paper sheds some light on this topic with reference to Italy, a country characterised by an increasing ageing population. The aim is to examine life satisfaction among people aged 65 and older and its predictors. We adopt a gender approach to examine whether – as suggested by the literature – older men and women have different sources of satisfaction. We test this hypothesis in Italy, a country still characterised by an unbalanced public and private gender system. In doing this, we also control whether living arrangements – specifically living alone – influence the determinants of life satisfaction of older men and women. The data used are from the cross-sectional surveys ‘Aspects of Daily Life’, undertaken in Italy by the National Statistical Institute. The results do not show clear gender differences in the determinants of life satisfaction, with only some slight gender differences among those living alone. This suggests that the social and cultural environment may play a relevant role for older peoples life satisfaction.

The importance of intentions in the mechanism of reproductive behaviour formation

In a situation of low fertility like that operating nowadays, studying the determinants of reproductive behaviour is very important. In a context such as Western industrialized one, in which birth control induces a feature of consciousness into fertility conduct, reproductive intentions have a fundamental role. This paper examines the mechanism which leads to the formation of reproductive behaviour starting from intentions, with reference to a large city in Italy, where fertility is very low, Milan. In addition, the hypothesis that women have innate and unobservable propensities toward family formation is verified through a simultaneous equations model. It allows to control for the potential endogeneity of reproductive intentions in determining subsequent behaviour. Results partially confirm this hypothesis: no significant correlation is found between unobservable components influencing intentions and behaviour. The relevance of reproductive intentions for subsequent fertility behaviour is, however, pointed out.

Do Neighbourhoods Have an Influence on Reproductive Intentions? Empirical Evidence from Milan

Meggiolaro S. Do neighbourhoods have an influence on reproductive intentions? Empirical evidence from Milan, Regional Studies. This paper aims at studying the contextual effect on reproductive intentions with an innovative approach. It considers women and the groups to which they belong ‘close up’, using data in very great territorial detail with reference to an Italian metropolitan area: Milan. This allows context to be described in an in-depth and original way, thus allowing an examination to be made of the mechanism underlying the formation of fertility intentions. Results suggest that besides the importance of individual factors and preferences, reproductive choices are also influenced by some characteristics of the places in which individuals live. Meggiolaro S. Les voisinages, influencent-ils les intentions de reproduire? Des preuves empiriques provenant de Milan, Regional Studies. Employant une façon innovatrice, cet article cherche à étudier l’impact du milieu sur les intentions de reproduire. A partir des données régionales très détaillées sur une zone métropolitaine, à savoir Milan, on considère ‘en gros plan’ les femmes et les groupes auxquels elles appartiennent, Cela permet la présentation du mileu d’une façon approfondie et originale, facilitant un examen du mécanisme qui étaye l’établissement des intentions de reproduire. Les résultats laissent voir que le choix de reproduire est influencé aussi par certains caractéristiques du milieu où habitent l’individu, à part l’importance des facteurs et des préférences particuliers. Intentions de reproduire Impact du milieu Données sous-municipales Milan Meggiolaro S. Wirkt sich die Nachbarschaft auf die reproduktiven Absichten aus? Empirische Belege aus Mailand, Regional Studies. In diesem Beitrag wird der Kontexteffekt auf reproduktive Absichten mit Hilfe eines innovativen Ansatzes untersucht. In einer ‘Nahaufnahme’ untersuchen wir Frauen und die Gruppen, zu denen sie gehören, wofür äußerst detaillierte territoriale Daten des italienischen Metropolitangebiets Mailand zum Einsatz kommen. Auf diese Weise lässt sich der Kontext auf ausführliche und originelle Weise beschreiben, was wiederum eine Untersuchung der Mechanismen ermöglicht, die der Bildung von reproduktiven Absichten zugrundeliegen. Aus den Ergebnissen geht hervor, dass die Reproduktionsentscheidungen nicht nur von individuellen Faktoren und Vorlieben abhängen, sondern auch von einigen Merkmalen der Orte, an denen die Personen wohnen. Reproduktive Absichten Kontexteffekte Details unterhalb der Gemeindeebene Mailand Meggiolaro S. ¿Influyen los vecindarios en las intenciones reproductivas? Evidencia empírica de Milán, Regional Studies. La finalidad de este artículo es estudiar el efecto contextual en las intenciones reproductivas con un enfoque innovador. Analizamos en primer plano a las mujeres y los grupos a los que pertenecen usando datos con gran detalle territorial con referencia a un área metropolitana de Italia: Milán. De esta manera podemos describir un contexto de un modo profundo y original, lo que nos permite hacer un análisis de los mecanismos subyacentes en la formación de las intenciones de fertilidad. Los resultados indican que además de la importancia de factores y preferencias individuales, las decisiones reproductivas también están influenciadas por algunas características de los lugares en los que viven las personas. Intenciones reproductivas Efectos contextuales Datos submunicipales Milano

Family contexts and adolescents' emotional status

Childrens living arrangements have become increasingly diverse and complex in recent decades: a significant proportion of children reside in stepfamilies or in separated one-parent families, even in countries such as Italy, which only recently is undergoing a transition from traditional to less traditional family behaviours. The present study explores whether – given the still relatively traditional family context – adolescents experiencing parental separation/repartnering have substantial lower levels of psychological well-being than those living in more traditional families. Analyses with data from a national representative survey conducted in Italy in 2004–2005 suggest that adolescents living in non-traditional families are not necessarily at higher risks of emotional suffering than others. Only adolescents who live in stepfamilies show a lower level of emotional well-being than those living in two-biological-parent families, and this effect is not mediated by family resources. Thus, the relatively high social and economic costs of divorce associated to a traditional family context do not necessarily imply negative consequences for childrens emotional status. This suggests further research to better account for distinctive features of national context.

Social relations and life satisfaction: the role of friends

Social capital is defined as the individual’s pool of social resources found in his/her personal network. A recent study on Italians living as couples has shown that friendship relationships, beyond those within an individual’s family, are an important source of support. Here, we used data from Aspects of Daily Life, the Italian National Statistical Institute’s 2012 multipurpose survey, to analyze the relation between friendship ties and life satisfaction. Our results show that friendship, in terms of intensity (measured by the frequency with which individuals see their friends) and quality (measured by the satisfaction with friendship relationships), is positively associated to life satisfaction.

Living arrangements and cognitive decline among the elderly in Europe

ABSTRACT Family resources may play an important role in the wellbeing of older people. In this paper, we examine the association between living arrangement and cognitive decline among people over 65 living in different European countries. The underlined hypothesis is that living with others (i.e. spouse or/and children) vis-à-vis living alone may have a positive role in maintaining cognitive functioning, but also that such beneficial influence varies according to the circumstances. To this end, we used data from the first two waves of the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe (SHARE), which provides indicators of several cognitive functions: orientation, immediate recall, delayed recall, verbal fluency and numeracy. Net of both the potential biases due to the selective attrition and the re-test effects, the evidence shows that the association between living arrangement and cognitive decline depends on the geographical area and on the starting level of cognitive function.

Life satisfaction among older people in Italy in a gender approach – CORRIGENDUM

This paper was prepared within the framework of the research programme “The Italian families between tradition and innovation. New types, new challenges and new opportunities” supported by the University of Padova in the ambit of the  University Research Projects, grant number CPDA. The authors are also grateful to the anonymous reviewers for their helpful comments and suggestions to improve the manuscript.

The Context of Body Art: Body Piercing and Tattooing Among High School Students in a Northeastern Italian Region

The present study analyses factors associated with the propensity for piercing and tattooing among adolescents, from a survey conducted in 2007 in high schools in the Veneto Region (Northeast Italy). After some descriptive analyses, multinomial logistic regression models were applied to identify what predicts the practice of, interest in, or indifference to piercing and tattooing. Results show gender differences in the approach to body modification: For girls, body art is considered a mainstream activity involving younger cohorts; piercing and tattooing become a way of increasing their own body satisfaction. For boys, factors connected with the propensity for these practices are a low cultural background and the importance given to physical appearance. For both boys and girls, a significant aspect in defining attitudes toward body art practices is the values system: Values such as enjoyment, beauty, and youth, are found to be closely connected with a high propensity for these practices.