Archives are filled with articles focused on the outcomes of children raised in single parent homes versus children raised in the nuclear family setting. The subject is highlighted in mass volumes throughout various internet blog forums, newspaper articles, and popular magazines detailing the statistical data and reputed points of view on the outcomes of the subject. Countless bloggers provide substantial personal testimonies highlighting both ends in the debate, while giving readers an inside-look at this situation from all different walks of life. Developing this issue into a broader context, we as the readers have to consider the magnitude of the issue and ask ourselves, “In concern with the betterment of my family, which lifestyle could I possibly adopt to ensure that my children are adequately socialized and prepped for life outside the parental structure?” However, this is not a question that requires a prognosis from a prominent sociologist; in fact, children raised in single parent families are just as capable at success as children raised in the traditional family setting. In today’s media, numerous journalists, bloggers, and sociologists argue that society as a whole has been damaged by the continuing decimation of the nuclear family. Approximately half of this nation’s population is occupied with citizens adopting the single parent lifestyle. Although many argue that the single parent cannot raise a child as successfully as two parents; however, others contend that the nuclear family setting is most beneficial because both parents directly leads to desired child enhancement. Nonetheless, this dispute needs to be addressed: Are these situations contradicting each other so much that only a single setting would be ethical... ... middle of paper ... ...ne of the best predictors of children's emotional and social well-being.While a single parent family may not be the ideal situation for raising children, many two-parent families are also less than desirable. Results of studies have indicated that a home filled with conflict is the least desirable home environment for children. When the child's prior two-parent household included frequent fighting and discord between the adults, the child can benefit from living in a one-parent home provided that the conflict is stopped. A parent who is no longer devoting time to warring with a partner may have more energy to give to the kids. Children observe adult relationships and usually apply what they have learned to their own relationships as adults. By residing with only one parent, the child may actually have a chance to observe healthier adult relationships”.(Hansen, 2011)
Single parent homes provide clear communication between the parent and the child. Communication is something that has to be developed between one person to the other person. It really helps, because it gets children use to being told no. Also it gets children to think of other ways to compromise using their mouths instead of resulting to violence. It allows for a clear understanding between two people. In Publisher Carl E. Pickhardt, PhD’s article “Why Single Parents Can Parent Adolescents Well” he writes, “With much t talk about and less time to talk, busyness causes single parents to speak directly and to the point, not hesitating to speak up when difficult issues need to be addressed, and treating conflict not as a challenge to their authority, but as a talking point.” (Pickhardt 6).
Two-parent families consist of a mother and father living in a home with dependent children. The family may consist of a biological mother and father or a step-parent. In two-parent families found little or no negative effects. Researchers suggest that children from two parent families are less likely to have social issues. Children raised in two-parent homes are more likely to complete high school and attend college. Cho, Lee, and Kuchner (2007) found that students raised in two parent homes demonstrate better behavior, have less absences and tardies and have much higher grade point averages. Researchers suggest that children from two parent homes have better grades and achieve academically as well as socially because the parents have more time to devote to the upbringing of the children oppose to single parents.
Families are becoming more diverse and they come in all shapes and sizes. Some people consider families to be strictly biological, while others consider people they love to be their family. Although two-parent families are the majority, one-parent families are becoming more common in today’s society. A sole-parent is considered to be a parent without a partner or spouse who is the primary care giver of one or more children in a household (Ministry of Social Development, 2010). From the age of 14 onward I was raised by my father. I witnessed firsthand th...
However, as generations have moved into the 21th century there has been a major switch in the family unit. There is no considerable amount of family which can be defined as single parents home on the rise as the normal family or nuclear unit. “Whether a single-parent household is formed following divorce, separation, widowhood, or an out-of-wedlock birth, it is clear that the single-parent household has become a new family form in contemporary society”(Anderson,S,A,2010). Single parent’s household may not be the biological parent. Single parent’s household included mother, father, grandparents, foster or adopted parent, and a sibling. Each family unit is very unique and diverse which can amount to the vast differences between the families. However, there are many aspects that each single family household may have similarities. As a single parent can be more prone to stress and the children are often at a disadvantage when it comes to their mental and emotional health. Men and women who are a single parent family often struggle more than a two parents household because everything is rely on one parent. While single parents can different backgrounds which have lead to the single parent situations such as divorce, death, or other unique arrangements that can result in a change of family dynamics. This paper it will examine the similarities and the differences in families when single parents result from divorce, death and never married
Both parents are critical for a child’s growth and development. Not having a parent may impact both child and parent adversely. “Children with one parent are at higher risk of delinquency, then, because there is one less person capable of supervision” (Anderson, 576). It seems only logical that a child raised by one parent would have a harder time trying to stay out of trouble. Individual and Contextual Influences on Delinquency: The Role of the Single-parent Family an article written by Amy Anderson focuses on the single-parent family role. The data used to examine this role was taken from an evaluation type of research called the Gang Resistance Education and Training (GREAT). The sample population was 5,935 eighth-grade students, aged thirteen to fifteen from forty-two schools at eleven sites. They used three measures of self-reported delinquency, status, property, and person offenses. The results of this study seemed to be that the specific family structure did not affect weather an adolescent participated in delinquent activity.
Families are becoming more diverse and they come in all shapes and sizes. Some people consider families to be strictly biological, while others consider people they love to be their family. Although two-parent families, also known as a nuclear family are the majority, one-parent families are becoming more common in today’s society. A sole-parent is considered to be a parent without a partner or spouse who is the primary care giver of one or more children in a household (Ministry of Social Development, 2010). From the age of 14 onward I was raised by m...
As a child, living with a single parent can take a toll on academics and behavior. According to McLanahan and Sandefur, “The high school dropout rate of children of divorced parents is roughly two times higher than that of children of which the parents did not divorce” (“Children Divorce Statistics”). This statistic shows that living with a single parent can have a serious effect on a student's life and they are twice as
Bartlett, K. T. (1994) Rethinking Parenthood As an Exclusive Status: The need for Legal Alternatives when the Premise of the Nuclear Family has failed. (pp. 879)
For many years, children growing up in a single parent family have been viewed as different. Being raised by only one parent seems impossible to many yet over the decades it has become more prevalent. In today’s society many children have grown up to become emotionally stable and successful whether they had one or two parents to show them the rocky path that life bestows upon all human beings. The problem lies in the difference of children raised by single parents versus children raised by both a mother and a father. Does a child need both parents? Does a young boy need a father figure around? Does the government provide help for single parents? What role do step-parents and step-siblings play? With much speculation, this topic has become a very intriguing argument. 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
Frequent and intense conflict or fighting between parents also has a negative impact on children’s sense of safety and security which affects their relationships with their parents and with others. Parental conflict that focuses on children is also linked to adjustment problems, particularly when children blame themselves for their parents’ problems. Even Research has found that following separation and divorce, children are twice as likely to have emotional, social, behavioural and academic problems compared to children from families that are still together. However, this may not be the case in all
The slightest dysfunction in a family structure can be detrimental to a child’s development. Children often act out and take part in delinquent activities. In order to increase a child’s chance to succeed in life, they must be raised in a stable environment involving two parents. This helps them to feel included in the family and will help build their confidence and independence later in life.
In modern society, it is no surprise for a child to grow up in a one-parent household. This does not mean, however, that one-parent households have good impacts on children. Children who grow up in a one-parent household are more likely to become depressed and develop physiological issues. In two-parent households, children are more likely to be healthy, happy, and successful. A two-parent household has a more stable environment for children than a one-parent household because of the difference in economics, well-being, and emotional support.
It is never a child’s decision to only live with one parent. There are many ways that single-parent homes occur. Some of these ways include unplanned pregnancy, divorce, the decision to be a single parent by choice, and death of a spouse. In every case families are disputed greatly. Parents might experience depression, emotional problems etc…. but the child is affected the most. Single-parent families are commonly targeted for controversial issues. We must be careful that we don’t stereotype these when they’re very hard to take care of themselves and their children. We do however need to notice distinct patterns in children who give up in a single parent home and what problems they face. Even though a dual family is noted as the best environment for c...
It has been said, children from two-parent families are better off. The setting is also a factor to take into consideration. The increase in single- parent homes has had an extensive and negative effect on children’s development. 50% of marriages end in divorce. We have young people with young minds having children, they can hardly take care of themselves at the age of 21, yet they have decided to bring four children into this world to be raised by one parent. In some communities, majority of the children are being raised by a single parent. Statistics have shown that children raised in a healthy single parent home have more problems emotionally, psychologically, in school, and with the law than those raised in healthy two-parent homes. No matter how good a single parent is, that a single parent can NEVER do for the child how two present, committed, parent partners share and work together; communicate together and solve problems together as equals.
Over recent years, more and more children are being raised in single parent homes. The question is, “Can these children raised in single parent homes become productive citizens?” Many say in order to become a successful citizen in life, a child must have both a mother and a father in a home. However, many of today’s top successful people in life do not come from a home with both parents. Being a single parent does not one mean raising a child alone, but also supporting the child needs financially and emotionally. Raising a child properly does not depend on the structure of the home but on the morals and qualities instilled in the child.