Showing papers by "Linda J. Waite published in 2012"

Social Network Resources and Management of Hypertension

Abstract: Hypertension is one of the most prevalent chronic diseases among older adults, but rates of blood pressure control are low. In this article, we explore the role of social network ties and network-based resources (e.g., information and support) in hypertension diagnosis and management. We use data from the National Social Life, Health, and Aging Project to identify older adults with undiagnosed or uncontrolled hypertension. We find that network characteristics and emotional support are associated with hypertension diagnosis and control. Importantly, the risks of undiagnosed and uncontrolled hypertension are lower among those with larger social networks—if they discuss health issues with their network members. When these lines of communication are closed, network size is associated with greater risk for undiagnosed and uncontrolled hypertension. Health care utilization partially mediates associations with diagnosis, but the benefits of network resources for hypertension control do not seem to stem from heal...

Grandparents Providing Care to Grandchildren A Population-Based Study of Continuity and Change

Abstract: This study examines transitions in grandchild care and the characteristics of grandparents making these transitions, using longitudinal data from a nationally representative sample of 13,626 grandparents in the 1998-2008 Health and Retirement Study. More than 60% of grandparents provided grandchild care over the 10-year period; more than 70% of those did it for 2 years or more. Grandparents with fewer functional limitations and more economic resources were more likely to start or continue nonresidential care, whereas relatively disadvantaged grandparents were more likely to start and continue coresidential care. Grandparents who were African American, younger, married, living with fewer minor children of their own, or had more grandchildren were more likely to start care, particularly nonresidential care. African Americans and Hispanics were more likely than Whites to start and continue coresidential care. These findings demonstrate the heterogeneity of caregiving and point to the lack of resources among ...

Women's Employment During Pregnancy and Following Birth

Abstract: In the last 30 years the working mother has become the norm rather than a rarity. In 1960 fewer than 1 in 5 mothers with children under age 6 were in the labor force; by 1987 this figure had reached 57%. Previous research has consistently found that women with young children are less likely to participate in the labor force than those with only older children. Over time the proportion of all mothers who are working has increased but the differential in labor force participation between mothers with young children and those with older children has remained nearly constant. Today labor force activity reaches high levels soon after the birth of a child. A number of explanations have been offered for this dramatic change: 1) womens wages have risen in real terms increasing the opportunity cost of their time out of the labor market 2) the real earnings of young men have declined thus the increased labor force participation can be attributed to an income effect and 3) secular change not directly related to income and substitution effects is responsible for this increase in labor force participation. There has been an increasing acceptance of market work by mothers and adjustment of labor market institutions to accommodate working mothers. This paper empirically analyses panel data from the National Longitudinal Surveys of Youth to test the validity of these 3 competing hypotheses. The authors find evidence that higher wages are associated with increased work near childbirth. The evidence for income effects is somewhat weaker because they find that higher income from sources other than the mothers earned income is associated with decreased work only immediately following childbirth. Finally birth year as a measure of cohort and secular change does not enter significantly. Thus trends in labor force participation appear not merely to reflect trends in factors independent of wages and income. Since the decade spanned by the survey has been one of rising womens wages and stagnant to falling mens wages these results support a neo-classical interpretation of the revolutionary changes in employment of mothers of small children.