Social inequalities in later life: the socio-economic position of older people from ethnic minority groups in Britain

There are now nearly a quarter of a million individuals aged 60 years or over belonging to ethnic minority groups living in Britain. As the ethnic minority groups in Britain continue to age, information regarding their circumstances in later life will be of increasing importance for the development of appropriate services and policy. This article uses data from the General Household Survey (1991-96) to investigate the household living arrangements, lifestyle, socio-economic status, economic resources and experience of multiple deprivation in later life amongst older people from ethnic minority groups in Britain. The findings indicate that there are significant differences both between and within ethnic minority groups in access to material and social resources, which need to be taken into account by policy makers and planners.     

First births by age and education in Britain, France and Norway

Progressively later starting of childbearing has been a feature of cohort change in fertility across Europe and elsewhere over recent decades. Growing differences in the age patterns of childbearing between the Anglo-American and continental European countries, however, have also been found. The present study uses large linked-record databases in Britain, France and Norway to analyse these differences in more detail, focussing on age at entry to motherhood (first childbearing) by level of educational attainment among women born in the 1950s and in the 1960s. The shift between these two cohorts towards a later pattern of first childbearing in Britain was confined to women with secondary school qualifications and above. For women born in the 1960s, the peak age for risk of first childbearing among those with secondary school qualifications grew to be between seven and eleven years later than among women without secondary school qualifications. In France and Norway, the peak ages for risk of first childbearing shifted more uniformly across education levels between the two cohorts. For these 1950s and 1960s cohorts, improvements in women's educational levels also occurred more uniformly in France and Norway, moving more women into education categories characterised by later patterns of first childbearing.     

The decline of intensive intergenerational care of older people in Great Britain, 1985-1995

There are increasing concerns about the future availability of informal care for older people, particularly care by their children. This article explores past trends in the provision of informal care by children/children-in-law to their older parents/parents-in-law between 1985 and 1995 in Great Britain, using successive General Household Survey data. The article suggests that, during this period, there was a decline in co-resident intergenerational care and that this was associated with a decline in highly intensive intergenerational care. The article explores possible factors underlying these trends, in particular, demographic changes and changes in patterns of formal care for older people.     

Families, groups and clusters of local and health authorities: revised for authorities in 1999

This is the second of two articles describing the revision of The ONS classification of local and health authorities of Great Britain to take account of area changes in the 1990's. It presents local authorities in Great Britain as at April 1999 in terms of Families, Groups and Clusters, based on 37 socio-economic and demographic variables from the 1991 Census. Health authorities are presented in terms of Families and Groups only, based on the same variables. The previous article (in Population Trends 98) presented, for each local and health authority, up to four other authorities to which it is 'most similar'.     

Changing economic and social roles: the experience of four cohorts of mid-life individuals in Britain, 1985-2000

Men and women in Great Britain are increasingly involved in a variety of economic and social roles, particularly during their mid-life period. This article examines the changes in role occupancy across four birth cohorts passing throughout mid-life over the period 1985-2000. Data from the General Household Survey is used to investigate the occupancy of four key roles: 'partner', 'parent', 'carer' and 'paid worker', analyzing separate and multiple role occupancies and level of commitment to a particular role. The implications of the findings for health and employment policies is also discussed.     

沈阳市郊耕地不同土属交换态钙镁铁锰铜锌含量状况的分析

对沈阳市郊区1994个耕地土壤样本(0cm-20cm)的交换态钙、镁、铁、锰、铜、锌含量分布的研究结果表明：不同土属交换态钙、镁、铁、锰、铜、锌含量存在较大差异。碳酸盐草甸土含钙，壤质草甸土含镁，风沙土、水稻土、草甸土含铁，碱化草甸土含锰，菜园土和水稻土含铜，菜园土含锌较高；棕壤含钙，碳酸盐草句土含铁、锰、铜、锌，水稻土含锌普遍较低。造成这种差异的原因既有成土母质、成土过程、土壤质地等结构性因素，又有耕作、施肥和环境污染等随机性因素。比较不同土属交换态营养元素含量，可以更好地对土壤一作物系统的营养元素进行调控，指导中量、微量元素肥料施用。图2，参15。