Much media coverage has focused on some millennials' "failure to launch," the term for when young adults live at home and get a great deal of support from their parents. Human Development and Family Sciences Professor Karen Fingerman wondered about another phenomenon—let's call it failure to latch. She wanted to know: What about the young adults who don't have parental support?
The University of Texas at Austin expects its graduates to change the world. But, in an ever-changing world, that means preparing students in ways that are mindful of where educational approaches may need to change to remain relevant and aligned with modern needs of communities, industries and families.
Graduate student in Human Development and Family Sciences Allen Mallory was recently the featured student profiled in the 2019 edition of the College of Natural Sciences' award-winning magazine, The Texas Scientist.
It's been said that variety is the spice of life, and now scientists say variety in your social circle may help you live longer. Researchers at The University of Texas at Austin have found that older adults who spend more time interacting with a wide range of people were more likely to be physically active and had greater emotional well-being.
In a paper out Feb. 20 in the Journals of Gerontology Series B: Psychological Sciences and Social Sciences, researchers found that study participants who interacted more with family members and close friends, as well as acquaintances, casual friends, service providers and strangers were more likely to have higher levels of physical activity, less time spent sitting or lying around, greater positive moods and fewer negative feelings. It is the first study to link social engagement with physical activity throughout the day.
Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and questioning (LGBTQ) youths are more likely to end up in foster care or unstable housing and suffer negative outcomes, such as substance abuse or mental health issues, while living in the child welfare system, according to new research from The University of Texas at Austin.
In a Feb. 11 paper in the journal Pediatrics, researchers looked at 593,241 youths living in California in grades 6-12. Less than 1 percent of the sample was living in foster care or unstable housing. But researchers found that more than 30 percent of the youths surveyed who were living in foster care identified as LGBTQ. More than 25 percent of those surveyed who were living in unstable housing, defined as living at a friend's house, motel, shelter or other transitional housing, identified as LGBTQ.
Racial and ethnic discrimination is problematic for all aspects of development — from mental and physical health to risky behaviors and academic success — particularly for Latinos, researchers at The University of Texas at Austin determined after analyzing findings from hundreds of previous studies on adolescents.
The latest study, published in the American Psychologist, considered 214 previous studies comprising 91,338 adolescents and measured 11 distinct indicators of well-being.
In one of the largest and most diverse studies of transgender youths to date, researchers led by a team at The University of Texas at Austin have found that when transgender youths are allowed to use their chosen name in places such as work, school and at home, their risk of depression and suicide drops.
"Many kids who are transgender have chosen a name that is different than the one that they were given at birth," said author Stephen T. Russell, professor and chair of human development and family science. "We showed that the more contexts or settings where they were able to use their preferred name, the stronger their mental health was."
