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Fathers absence affects adolescent daughters
Negative effects of father absence
Negative effects of father absence
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What was the purpose of this study? This study had three purposes. The first purpose of this study was to better understand the effects of fathers’ antisocial behaviors have on their children while differentiating between those fathers who have very antisocial behavior with those that have very little. The second purpose was the find out if the effects of a father’s being in his child’s life was the same in every family. The third purpose in this study was to find out whether the children of antisocial fathers were going to develop behavioral problems from both genetic and environmental risks.
What hypothesis or hypotheses did the authors test in this study? The author’s felt the father’s antisocial behavior would affect the results in whether the father was present or not. For example, if a father is only a little antisocial and he spends very little time living with his children his children could have a lot of behavior problems.
However, if the father is very antisocial and he lives with his children his children can also develop a lot of behavior problems. Even though logically it seems that having a father living with the child would be beneficial for the child if the child observes that his father has antisocial behaviors it can create unwanted problems. Those conducting this
study hypothesized that the most extreme cases of behavior problems would be found could they pass on traits that would cause antisocial behaviors genetically but the constant observing of their father’s misbehaving could create environmental factors as well.
What was the prior research that motivated these hypotheses? Briefly describe the studies that have been done in the past that cause the authors to propose these hypotheses. There has been research done that children who have been raised with both parents living with them behave better than those children who live with only one parent.
A theory stemming from evolutionary psychology indicated that men’s promiscuous sexual behavior lessoned their drive to stick with their family and hence the reason why there are a lot more single mothers than fathers. This caused some lawmakers and researchers to realize that perhaps the absence of a father in his child’s life could create problems with the child both academically and behaviorally. There are several reasons why a father’s absence can be detrimental to the child su...
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... the effects that antisocial behavior of fathers have on their children’s own behavior and this can help them better understand the family unit and allows the lawmakers to make adjustments to the law regarding encouraging those on welfare to marry. By understanding the entire picture, the lawmakers are able to convince single parents to abide to laws that are made. What implications do these findings have for parenting practices? The findings can help better parents understand the reasons why their child is misbehaving and how to limit their chances of becoming severe cases. Also the results of this study questions the benefits and disadvantages to the institution of marriage. Marriage can benefit a child if the father has low or average degrees of antisocial behavior and the higher he has and the more time he lives with the child the more damaging it could be for the child. Basically, this study gives us more insight on the effects of not only the presence of the father or lack of, but the degrees of antisocial behavior expressed by him and the interplay of the two. Genetics and environment work together to determine the development of behavioral problems within a child’s life.
However, Peter had left the household in 2001, but still supported the family financially. In the book Criminal Behavior: A Psychological Approach by Curt R. Bartol discusses the parental and family risk factors of single-parent households. In the early studies it was concluded that delinquents are more likely to come from homes where parents were separated or divorced. In recent studies researchers have looked into the correlation of single-parent households, the quality of the parent-child relationship, economic status, emotional support available, and more. In the study of “conflict-ridden vs. conflict-free” it focused on the process rather than structure of family.
According to Price & Kunz, (2003) family structure is a major factor in explaining delinquency. The research aimed at finding a link between cohabiting and other family types with delinquency (Price & Kunz, 2003). They made an important finding that adolescents from cohabiting families are at greater odds of engaging in non-violent delinquency compared to those from biological-parent families. The findings contradict the findings of other studies that show that that youth from broken families are likely to engage themselves in delinquent activities. For example, in one longitudinal study by Juby and Farrington, (2003) they found out that children especially boys who were from non-intact families portrayed negative behaviors compared to those that were from intact families (Juby & Farrington, 2001). Moreover, Prince & Kunz, (2003) performed a meta-analysis involving divorce and juvenile delinquency. They also made a finding that children from divorced homes have a high rate of delinquency compared to those from intact homes.
...istics, 1999). McBride, Brent A., Sara K., Sullivan, and Ho-Ho (2005) reported about the achievement levels in a adolescent who grows up with a father, “A study of 1330 children from the PSID showed that fathers who are involved on a personal level with their child schooling increases the likelihood of their child's achievement. When fathers assume a positive role in their child's education, students feel a positive impact.” (p. 201-216). Children who do not grow up in a two parent homes, are more likely to fail and repeat a grade in school. It is also important to note that children who grow up in single parent families are less likely to have parents involved with the school, 62% of children with two parent homes have parents that are involved in school, while children from single parent homes have half of them involved in school (Nord, Winquist, West, 2001).
Three broad behaviors are especially notable in understanding this concept. A father’s presence in a youth’s life, his criminal record, and the way he interacts with his children may contribute to youth delinquency. The lack of his presence may result in poverty, poor monitoring, and increased delinquent socialization. His criminal record may influence the record of his youth, or may inhibit the father’s ability to work out of poverty conditions. Finally, abuse and neglect affect a child emotionally, physically, and mentally. These actions can result
"Father absence and the welfare of children." Coping with divorce, single parenting, and remarriage: A risk and resiliency perspective (1999): 117-145.
Sigmund Freud nailed it when he said “I cannot think of any need in childhood as strong as the need for a father’s protection.” There are numerous Consequences regarding the issue of fatherlessness in America today, many of which have lasting impacts. Poverty is one major issue that can result from a fatherless home; a recent study showed that children in father-absent homes are almost four times more likely to be poor. In addition as of 2011, 12 percent of children in married-couple families were living in poverty, compared to 44 percent of children in mother-only families. That means that children
Fathers have the tendency to have a greater influence on the child than the mother. When children know that they have someone that genuinely loves them, they tend to be happier and more easily satisfied in life. When children do not feel the love from their parents, they become aggressive and unstable emotionally. Without parents or their support, children begin to feel as if they are not good enough and that nobody wants them. But when it comes to rejection from a father, “Delinquency, depression, and substance abuse are all more closely linked to dad’s rejection”(Pappas), which shows how much more a father is needed in a child’s life. Research shows that “fathers who are most effective are those who listen to their children, have a close relationship, set appropriate rules, but also grant appropriate freedom”(Pappas), which was lacked in Fences and The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. A father’s presence is important because, if someone has a son or daughter and is not there for his children or if they are there and they are doing bad things in front of them, that makes the son believe it is fine to have children and not come around or it is all right to abuse
Antisocial Personality Disorder can be transmitted genetically. A statistic says, “Family studies show that nearly one fifth of first-degree relatives of antisocials are themselves antisocials” (Craighead and Nemeroff). If an ASPD person has a child, there is a higher chance that the offspring will have antisocial personality disorder. Genetically, the central nervous systems neurotransmitter serotonin has been linked to aggressive behavior. “MRI brain scans of criminals… revealed reduced gray matter volume in the prefrontal cortex” (Psychology in Action). Environmentally, if an ASPD person has children, they could unintentionally raise them to have the same perspective on life. How an ASPD person was raised influences how severe the disorder is also. In some instances, if a set of twins are separated at birth and one is adopted by a family with a non-antisocial personality disorder and the other is adopted by an antisocial personality disorder person, the one who is not antisocial will raise a non-antisocial child and vice versa. In other words, some people seem to have a biological tendency to develop ASPD, and the family environment will determine whether that tendency is fulfilled (Batten). This idea can be scientifically supported by the Nature vs. Nurture theory, even though ASPD is not just one side of the theory but
Kim-Cohen, J., Moffitt, T., Taylor, A., Pawlby, S., & Caspi, A. (2005). Maternal Depression and Children’s Antisocial Behavior : Nature and Nuture Effects. JAMA Psychiatry :62(2), 173-181.
What people must understand is that properly raising a child does not rely on the structure of a family but should be more focused on the process When a topic such as this one has a broad amount of variables it is impossible to simply link these problems to only having one parent. In the article, “Single-parent families cause juvenile crime”, author Robert L. Maginnis states, “Children from single-parent families are more likely to have behavior problems because they tend to lack economic security and adequate time with parents”. The simple statement that raw criminals are products of single-parent adolescence is absurd. What this writer must understand is that it can be extremely difficult for one parent to raise a child by themselves for many reasons. A single-parent must work full time to be able to afford to provide for themselves and their child.
A child needs both of their parents’ love and affection while growing up. A child that grows up with both has a higher chance of being a more stable person. However, not all children have this luxury; some children are born into dysfunctional families that consist of only one parent like the children in the Wingfield family. “A study of 1,977 children age 3 and older living with a residential father or father figure found that children living with married biological parents had significantly fewer externalizing behavioral problems than children living with at least one non-biological parent” (Consequences of Fatherlessness). The absent parent in the Wingfield family affected everyone in the family, not only the children. The absent father,
6. Joseph, Jay. “Chapter 8: Is Crime in the Genes? A Critical Review of Twin and Adoption Studies of Criminal and Antisocial Behavior.” The Gene Illusion: Genetic Research in Psychiatry and Psychology under the Microscope, Algora Pub., 2004, pp. 278–279.
Tuvblad, C., Grann, M., & Lichtenstein, P. (2006). Heritability for adolescent antisocial behaviour differs with socioeconomic status: Gene-environment interaction. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 47, 734-743. doi:10.1111/j.1469-7610.2005.01552.x
The Family structure has changed significantly in the last fifty years. With higher percentages of marriage ending in divorce, and higher rates of childbearing out of wedlock, single parent families are increasing rapidly. “Seventy percent of all the children will spend all or part of their lives in a single-parent household.” (Dowd) Studies have shown that the children of these families are affected dramatically, both negatively and positively. Women head the majority of single- parent families and as a result, children experience many social problems from growing up without a father. Some of these problems include lack of financial support, and various emotional problems by not having a father around, which may contribute to problems later in life. At the same time, children of single-parent homes become more independent because they learn to take care of themselves, and rely on others to do things for them.
A major problem in our society today is the absence of fathers in the home and in the lives of their children. I believe that growing up in a two parent household gives a child the best chance to be successful. My theory is that the absence of a father greatly affects the outcome of the child’s life and limits their opportunity for success. For the sake of this argument success will be measured by education level, mental state and crime. I will explore what effects, if any, the absence of a father has on these factors of success.