NCJ Number
238797
Date Published
July 2012
Length
24 pages
Annotation
Drawing on data from 22 Federal agencies that produce or use statistical data on children and families, this report summarizes data for 2012 on 41 key indicators related to the well-being of America's children and families.
Abstract
These indicators are categorized under the following topics: demographic background of children ages 0-17; family and social environment; economic circumstances; health care; physical environment and safety; behavior; education; and health. Data on demographic background pertain to the U.S. child population, children as a percentage of the population, and their racial and ethnic composition. Indicators of family and social environment pertain to family structure and children's living arrangement, births to unmarried women, child care, children of at least one foreign-born parent, language spoken at home and difficulty speaking English, adolescent births, and child maltreatment. Indicators related to economic circumstances are child poverty and family income, secure parental employment, and food insecurity. Health-care indicators are related to health insurance coverage, usual source of health care, immunization, and oral health. Indicators of physical environment and safety measure outdoor air quality, environmental tobacco smoke, drinking-water quality, lead in children's blood, housing problems, youth victims of serious violent crimes, child injury and mortality, and adolescent injury and mortality. Indicators of education indicate math and reading achievement, high school courses, high school completion, youth neither enrolled in school nor working, and college enrollment. Indicators of health address preterm birth and low birth weight, infant mortality, emotional and behavioral difficulties, adolescent depression, activity limitation, diet quality, obesity, and asthma. Data are shown for 2011 as well as 2012, and whether the change between the years involves an increase, no statistically significant difference, or a decrease. 15 figures and 1 table