Newswise — COLUMBUS, Ohio – Despite the many challenges they face, slightly more than half of unmarried low-income couples with children have positive co-parenting relationships, a new study found.

And those supportive relationships were linked to their children showing more empathy, less emotional insecurity and fewer behavior problems.

Parents who are good co-parents work together as a team, provide support to each other and back up each other’s parenting decisions, said Susan Yoon, lead author of the study and associate professor of social work at The Ohio State University.

Those types of relationships may be particularly hard for the parents in this study, who may be more likely than others to be stressed by finances, racism, and lack of support.

“Our study specifically focused on racially and ethnically diverse unmarried couples with low incomes who are more likely to face a lot of parenting challenges,” Yoon said.

“But we found that 56% of these families had good co-parenting relationships which was linked to positive outcomes for their children.  Our findings really highlight the strengths these families exhibit.”

The study was published online recently in the Journal of Marriage and Family.

Participants in the study were 4,266 unmarried couples and their preschool-aged children from eight cities across the country who participated in the Building Strong Families study.

Parents in the study completed measures of how much they worked with their partner as a team to raise their child, and their perception of the other parent as a supportive co-parent.

Children’s socioemotional development was measured by asking mothers a variety of questions about their child’s empathy toward other children, their emotional insecurity and their internalizing problems (such as how fearful they were) and externalizing problems (such as being overly active).

The results of the study showed couples fell into four categories based on the quality of co-parenting and how each member of the couple thought the other did as a co-parent.

The largest category, Profile 4 – 56% of the sample – included couples with high-quality co-parenting in which both the mothers and fathers thought the other parent was supportive.

“This is the category where the children had the best outcomes, and it is encouraging that this was the largest group in our study,” Yoon said.

Parents in the other categories showed that it wasn’t just the quality of co-parenting that was related to how well the children fared – it also mattered quite a bit how much parents agreed that their partner was supportive, according to Yoon.

Children fared the worst in Profile 2 – (25% of the sample) – in which co-parenting was of moderate-high quality, but fathers had more negative views of how the mother co-parented.

“These findings suggest that fathers’ dissatisfaction might be an important warning sign for children’s poor functioning, even though co-parenting seemed relatively good,” Yoon said.

Children didn’t do much better in Profile 3 (12%), where co-parenting was rated moderate, but mothers were much less happy than fathers were with the co-parenting relationship.

Parents in Profile 1 (7%) had low-quality co-parenting and mothers had more negative perceptions of the co-parenting relationship.  Here children also did not fare well.

“Overall, we found that it isn’t just the quality of co-parenting that matters for children, it is also important to look at whether both the mother and father are satisfied with how things are going,” Yoon said.

“It is not good if there is a discrepancy between how mothers and fathers feel about the co-parenting relationship.”

These results show how important it is to include fathers in studies like this, given how their agreement or disagreement with mothers on co-parenting played a key role in child development.

Results also showed that when both parents had higher income and education, they were more likely to demonstrate high levels of supportive co-parenting.

“In order to strengthen families, we need to ensure that these low-income, unmarried parents have access to financial and material resources,” Yoon said.  “That can help support the development of mutually satisfying, high-quality co-parenting relationships.”

Other co-authors, all from Ohio State, were Joyce Y. Lee, Junyeong Yang, Jingyi Wang, Yiran Zhang, Minjung Kim and Sarah Schoppe-Sullivan.

 The study was funded by the Department of Health and Human Services Administration for Children and Families and the National Institute on Drug Abuse.

HOT SPRINGS, ARKANSAS, USA /EINPresswire.com/ — GeorgeMagazine has recently launched their latest creation, a new children’s magazine focused on leadership, patriotism, and faith. The magazine is geared toward children ages 6 to 12 and features a thought-provoking theme each month. Its latest edition set to release today focuses on setting goals and creative ways to stick with them.

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In this issue, readers can also look forward to:

1. Comic Book Style Stories: Read along as George Jr., his friend John, and his
sister Betsy, learn a lesson in setting goals, practicing, and staying patient.

2. Bible Stories: Each issue brings to life Bible stories, offering a kid-friendly
perspective on the teachings and morals found within these tales.

3. Branches of the Military: Children will learn the branches of the United
States Military and what each branch is responsible for.

4. Activities: Readers will learn how to create their very own snow globe as
well as how to make Garlic Toast Pizza.

5. Vocabulary: George Junior believes learning new words is important, and
each issue features a set of five words in the beginning of the magazine the
children will seek to find throughout the rest of the magazine.

6. Notable People: This issue features information about Nikola Tesla and the
inventions he created.

Parents can rest assured that George Junior magazine provides a safe and enriching environment for their children. The magazine’s focus is on providing quality content that is both educational and entertaining, allowing kids to explore the world around them while maintaining the innocence of childhood.

George Junior is available at georgejuniormagazine.com. Subscriptions are also available for added convenience and savings. The magazine is a monthly
subscription, allowing children to have something fun to look for in the mail.

With its dedication to fostering intellectual growth and character development, George Junior is the perfect gift for parents and grandparents looking to inspire children while keeping them engaged. Each issue is thoughtfully crafted to stimulate young minds and encourage them to dream, investigate, and thrive.
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Source: GEORGE Magazine

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Wilson’s holiday giveback focuses on enabling access to play at the YMCA; Special event for NYC kids to feature surprise athlete appearances

NEW YORK /PRNewswire/ — With the holiday season upon us, Wilson Sporting Goods Co., the world’s leading manufacturer of high-performance sports equipment, apparel and accessories, will be celebrating the “Gift of Game” by partnering with YMCA of the USA (Y-USA), the national resource office for the 2,500+ YMCAs across the country, to enable access to play for kids of all skill levels and backgrounds.

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“At Wilson^®, we believe the spirit of the holiday season is about so much more than just the traditional exchange of presents. That’s why we’re encouraging our global sport community to give the ‘Gift of Game’ this year,” said Amanda Lamb, Global Vice President of Brand at Wilson. “Shared experiences in sport offer a unique opportunity to build bonds, foster camaraderie and enable access to play in a way that is truly representative of the holiday season.”

Wilson and its global sport community will give the “Gift of Game” to YMCA kids across the country through a donate and match program online and in-stores from mid-November through the end of the year. Consumers will have the opportunity to add $1, $3 or $5 to their order at checkout to be donated to the Y. Wilson, in year three of its national partnership with Y-USA, will match up to $25,000 in customer donations.

Money raised through Wilson’s “Gift of Game” donation will benefit local YMCAs in 20 key markets around the U.S. Funding will be used to provide more Y scholarships, enabling access to play by subsidizing more membership and youth sports fees for under-served kids in 2024.

As a celebration of the “Gift of Game” campaign, Wilson will host a day of play with New York City kids at the La Central YMCA in the Bronx on Saturday, Dec. 2. Each attendee will receive a Y membership, have the chance to experience different sports throughout the event and leave with special holiday gifts from Wilson. The participating kids will also get to interact with athletes and special guests expected to make surprise-and-delight appearances.

For holiday shoppers looking to give the “Gift of Game,” Wilson offers an assortment of best-in-class equipment across a variety of sport categories, including basketball, football, tennis, pickleball, golf, baseball and more, as well as Wilson’s iconic sportswear collection, featuring technical apparel for both men and women. Follow along @Wilson and visit Wilson.com for more information.

About Wilson
Chicago, USA-based Wilson Sporting Goods Co., part of Amer Sports Group, is the world’s leading manufacturer of high-performance sports equipment, apparel, footwear and accessories. The Company brings more than a century of innovation, history and heritage across many sports including Racquet Sports, Baseball, Softball, Football, Basketball, Volleyball, Soccer and Golf. The brand also offers Wilson Sportswear inclusive of lifestyle and performance apparel for all to live like an athlete. Leveraging player insights to create products that push equipment and apparel innovation into new territories, Wilson empowers athletes at every level to perform at their best. Visit www.wilson.com for more information.

About the Y
Driven by its founding mission, the Y has served as a leading nonprofit committed to strengthening community for more than 175 years. The Y empowers everyone, no matter who they are or where they’re from, by ensuring access to resources, relationships and opportunities for all to learn, grow and thrive. By bringing together people from different backgrounds, perspectives and generations, the Y’s goal is to improve overall health and well-being, ignite youth empowerment and demonstrate the importance of connections in and across 10,000 communities nationwide. Learn more at ymca.org.

SOURCE Wilson Sporting Goods