Home > The well-being of parents, children & neighbourhoods: a national study of families in Respond! housing estates.

McKeown, Kieran and Haase, Trutz and Pratschke, Jonathan and Lanigan, Cathy and Burke, Shane and Murphy, Niamh and Allen, Lynda (2008) The well-being of parents, children & neighbourhoods: a national study of families in Respond! housing estates. Dublin: Respond Housing Association.

External website: http://www.lenus.ie/hse/handle/10147/288629

This study has two main objectives. The first is to determine the level of need and well-being among parents, children and neighbourhoods based on a representative sample of Respond! housing estates. The second is to determine the factors which influence the well being of parents, children and neighbourhoods in these estates. Both objectives, in turn, are designed to contribute to the overall strategy of Respond! by providing a robust assessment of need which can be used as a baseline against which to set targets and measure progress. In addition, the study aims to assist in the development of strategies which promote different types of well-being by analysing the factors associated with each. In other words, the data and analysis generated through this study is designed to assist Respond! in both reflecting on, and strengthening, the overall vision which has supported its activities over the past 25 years.

P.36 3.8 Smoking, Drinking and Drugs
Health behaviour influences physical health and, for this reason, we collected data on the prevalence of smoking, drinking and drugs. The results reveal that the rate of smoking among Respond! mothers (62%) is nearly twice the national average for women in Ireland (33%) reflecting, to some extent, the higher prevalence of smoking among lower socio-economic groups in Ireland and internationally. Smoking rates are much higher among mothers in one-parent households (68%) compared to two-parent households (53%). The use of alcohol is broadly similar between mothers in Respond! (67%) and Ireland (70%). The use of sedatives, tranquilisers or anti-depressants (on prescription) among Respond! mothers (10%) is twice the national average (5%). Usage of these drugs is considerably higher among mothers with a Medical Card (12%) and mothers in one-parent households (14%).


Repository Staff Only: item control page