Variation in Generational Perceptions of Child Health and Well-being

doi:10.1016/j.acap.2017.09.004

Academic Pediatrics

Volume 18, Issue 4, May–June 2018, Pages 384-389

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.acap.2017.09.004 Get rights and content

Abstract

Objective

To assess adults' perceptions regarding the health and well-being of children today relative to their own health and well-being as youth and the potential for intergenerational differences in those perceptions.

Methods

A cross-sectional, Internet-based survey of a nationally representative household sample was conducted using GfK Custom Research's Web-enabled KnowledgePanel, a probability-based panel representative of the US population. We assessed perceptions of children's health and well-being today compared to when respondents were growing up, including physical and mental health; and children's education, exercise, diet, health care, safety of communities, and emotional support from families, groups, and organizations.

Results

Overall, 1330 (65%) of 2047 adult respondents completed the survey. Only 26% of respondents believed that the current physical health of children, and 14% that the current mental health of children, is better today than when they were growing up. There was a significant trend among generations, with a greater proportion of older generations perceiving the physical health of children to be better today. Only 15% of respondents reported the chances for a child to grow up with good mental health in the future are “better” now than when they were growing up.

Conclusions

Adults across all generations in the United States today view children's health as unlikely to meet the goals of the American Dream of continuous improvement. Although demographic changes require continued focus on our aging population, we must equally recognize the importance of advancing a healthy future for our nation's children, who will assume the mantle of our future.

Section snippets

Study Design

We conducted a cross-sectional, Internet-based survey of a nationally representative household sample of the US population regarding perceptions of child health today versus when respondents were growing up. This survey was conducted as part of the C. S. Mott Children's Hospital National Poll on Children's Health (NPCH), a recurring online survey of parents and nonparents for over 10 years.¹⁵ The NPCH data collection method has served as the data source for several national peer-reviewed

Results

The survey completion rate was 65.0% (n = 1330 of 2047), as determined by following the American Association for Public Opinion Research standards for response rate reporting.²³ The demographics of the respondents are presented in the Table. Overall, 51.9% were female, 66.3% were white, 15.2% were Hispanic, and 11.0% were African American. There were similar proportions of millennials (28.2%), generation Xers (27.5%) and baby boomers (31.7%), with a smaller proportion of pre–baby boomers

Discussion

The most important finding from our study was that only a small proportion of adult Americans believe that the physical or mental health of children today is better than it was for them when they were children. Given that a significant portion of our national attention is focused on the issues of health and well-being of our adult and elderly population, these results are a clarion call to ensure our relative focus and investment in children's health is similarly considered. These findings also

Acknowledgments

The authors thank Christina Bethell, PhD, for her assistance with question development.

Supported in part by funding through Michigan Medicine and the Children's Hospital Association.

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Cited by (5)

Trends in Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) in the United States
2020, Child Abuse and Neglect
Citation Excerpt :
Not surprisingly, the public shares this pessimism. In a survey of the general population of the US over 80% of adults said that the well-being of children has worsened over time (Freed et al., 2018). In recent years, research on child well-being has increasingly focused on a cluster of childhood experiences thought to be particularly damaging to healthy development, what have been termed Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) (Javier, Hoffman, Shah, & Pediatric Policy, 2019).
It is important for those called upon to discuss major social determinants of health such as adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) to have accurate knowledge about generational trends in their prevalence.
To review available trend data on major forms of ACEs.
A search of academic data bases was conducted by combining the term “trend” with a variety of terms referring to childhood adversities.
Available trend data on ACEs from the 20th century show multi-decade declines in parental death, parental illness, sibling death, and poverty, but multi-decade increases in parental divorce, parental drug abuse and parental incarceration. More recent trend data on ACEs for the first fifteen to eighteen years of the 21st century show declines in parental illness, sibling death, exposure to domestic violence, childhood poverty, parental divorce, serious childhood illness, physical abuse, sexual abuse, physical and emotional bullying and exposure to community violence. Two 21st century ACE increases were for parental alcohol and drug abuse. Overall, there appear to have been more historical and recent improvements in ACEs than deteriorations. But the US still lags conspicuously behind other developed countries on many of these indicators.
Awareness of improvements, as well as persistent challenges, are important to motivate policy makers and practitioners and to prompt them to recognize the feasibility of success in the prevention of ACEs.
Public Opinion About Adverse Childhood Experiences: Social Stigma, Attribution of Blame, and Government Intervention
2022, Child Maltreatment
Factors Associated With Parental COVID-19 Vaccination Acceptance
2022, Clinical Pediatrics
Impact of stigmatizing language describing opioid-exposed mother infant dyads: A randomized case vignette study
2022, Substance Abuse
Well-being of parents and children during the COVID-19 pandemic: A national survey
2020, Pediatrics

: Conflict of interest: Mr Wietecha is the President and Chief Executive Officer of the Children's Hospital Association, which partially funded this study. The other authors have no conflicts of interest to disclose.

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Child and Adult PerspectivesVariation in Generational Perceptions of Child Health and Well-being

Abstract

Objective

Methods

Results

Conclusions

Section snippets

Study Design

Results

Discussion

Acknowledgments

The Epic of America

Invest in Kids: Restoring the American Dream

The Future of Wealth in the United States

American Dream Collapsing for Young Adults, Study Says, as Odds Plunge that Children Will Earn More Than Their Parents

Wage stagnation, rising inequality and the financial crisis of 2008

Camb J Econ

A Guide to Statistics on Historical Trends in Income Inequality

Ten Great Public Health Achievements—United States, 2001-2010

MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep

Mental Health, Racial Inequities Lead 2016 Top 10 Child Health Concerns

Healthy People 2020

Policy Priorities 2016

Keeping the Aging Population Healthy

The impact of the “aging of America” on children

Health Aff (Milwood)

Reassessing how society prioritizes the health of young people

Health Aff (Milwood)

Sources and perceived credibility of vaccine-safety information for parents

Pediatrics

Child and Adult Perspectives
Variation in Generational Perceptions of Child Health and Well-being