What Issues Concern
Bay Area Parents?

Jan. 11, 2007

For the second year in a row, Bay Area parents in 2006 put their children's emotional health at the top of their worry list, highlighting a less-recognized yet crucial aspect of children's well-being. In a wide-ranging survey commissioned by the Lucile Packard Foundation for Children's Health, parents across economic, geographic and racial/ethnic lines indicated that on a day-to-day basis stress, depression, weight, and the fallout from family conflict outrank other concerns about their children's health.

Emotional Health

Depression, Concern About
Overall | By Child's Age | By Income

Emotional Health, Ratings of
Overall | By Race/Ethnicity | By Income | By Child's Age

Family Issues
Child's Concern About Family Problems
Family Time, Adequacy of

Free Time, Adequacy of
Overall | How Children Spend Their Time

Media, Effects of
Overall | By Age Group

Risky Behaviors, Concern About
(such as drugs, alcohol, sexual behavior, and gangs)
Overall

Stress, Concern About
Overall

Stress, Ratings of Amount
Overall | By Age Group

Stress, Sources of
Overall

Physical Health

Asthma
Asthma Attacks or Episodes, Reports of

Disabilities
Children with Disabling Conditions, Reports of

Dental Care, Quality of
Overall | By Race/Ethnicity | By Income

Health Care, Quality of
Overall | By Race/Ethnicity | By Income

Physical Health, Ratings of
Overall | By Race/Ethnicity | By Income

Sleep
Adequacy of Sleep
Whether Children Ages 0-2 Sleep Through the Night, Reports of

Weight
Perception of Child's Weight | Concern About Child's Weight

School-Related Issues

Child's Feelings About School, Reports of
Overall | By Age of Child

Learning Disabilities
Children with Learning Disabilities, Reports of

Safety at School
Overall | By Race/Ethnicity | By Income

School, Quality of
Overall | By Race/Ethnicity | By Income

School Support Staff, Quality of
Overall

Teachers, Quality of
Overall

Basic Needs

Parents' Ability to Meet Child's Basic Needs
Overall | By Race/Ethnicity

About the Survey:
The Lucile Packard Foundation for Children's Health commissioned the Survey and Policy Research Institute (SPRI) at San Jose State University to conduct 1,796 interviews in Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, San Francisco, San Mateo and Santa Clara Counties with parents of children under the age of 18. Interviewing in Spanish and English was conducted July 10, 2006 to Aug. 2, 2006.

The margin of error, at the 95% confidence level, for the overall sample is ± 2.3%. For White non-Hispanics in the Bay Area the margin of error is ± 3.5%; for Latinos it is ± 4.4%; and for Asian Americans it is ± 4.6%. In San Mateo County, the margin of error is ± 4.7%; for Santa Clara County, it is ± 3.2%; and for the Alameda-Contra Costa counties region it is about ± 5.4%. In the two-county San Mateo and Santa Clara counties region, the margin of error for is ± 2.6%. African Americans parents, who constitute only about 7% of the region's total population, were not over-sampled and their responses are subject to a considerably larger margin of error. Populations of other ethnic groups were too small to provide reliable responses.

©2008 Lucile Packard Foundation for Children's Health. 400 Hamilton Ave. Suite 340, Palo Alto, CA 94301, (650) 497-8365