Wait a second!
More handpicked essays just for you.
More handpicked essays just for you.
The role of blended families in society
The role of blended families in society
Don’t take our word for it - see why 10 million students trust us with their essay needs.
Blended We learn as kids through our society that we should strive to achieve the American dream. The idea that you will meet the love of your life, have two and a half kids, buy a house with a white picket fence and a dog, and then live happily ever after. Sadly it doesn’t always work out the way we imagine. For many people unexpected challenges will arise in life: divorce, death, and unplanned pregnancies are some of the curveballs life throws at us. All we are left to do is pick up the pieces and make the best of a bad situation. Blended families are sometimes looked at with negativity. Due to the unique struggles that blended families deal with, we as a society should: respect, encourage, help, and embrace them. I grew up in a suburb …show more content…
Visitations were not very complicated to arrange, the aftermath of a visit was the difficult part. His father appeared to be in competition with us, it seemed as if he had no rules and would buy expensive gifts that we could not afford to give him. This made setting boundaries almost impossible, he was the “fun parent” who had all of the joys but none of the real responsibilities of parenting.
“When a stepfamily is formed, the members have no shared family histories or shared ways of doing things, and they may have very different beliefs. In addition, a child may feel torn between the parent they live with most (more) of the time and their other parent who they visit (e.g. lives somewhere else). Also, newly married couples may not have had much time together to adjust to their new relationship” ("Stepfamily Problems"). It is very hard to relate to my step-son when his childhood and mine seem to be polar opposites. Growing up, I lived in the same house until I graduated from High School. In contrast, before he had turned five, he was used bouncing between four different family members’ homes. I understand that picking up the pieces and building a new family is not a simple task.
Blended families require an extra dose of patience, forgiveness, love, and
In this millennial it is very common to see a divided family. People get married, discover their differences and often divorce. Yet, with divorce comes many decisions and often a messy outcome. While this may take a toll on a family, remarriage is another issue of it’s own. “Step parents” is what they call them; although no one is quit sure what the word “step” truly insinuates. The sacristy of a marriage and the bond of a family is metaphorically protected by the beamed structure of a home. It isn’t until you read “Stepdaughters” by Max Apple that you catch a glimpse of the interior complications and obstacles, divorced families often face. The author seamlessly paints the very common mother and teenage daughter tension many families endure. Yet, the story is uniquely told by “stepfather number three trying to stay on the sideline” (132). The author focuses on a few issues that a family (divorced or not) may face: overbearing control, lack of trust, and unwanted change. He does this, by use of temporal setting – the dreaded teenage years – and situation – the exhausted disagreement between the mother and daughter.
...ey are not happy with our other parent. Younger children do not understand and just want their parent's together. It may cause a lot of heartache when the children finally realize that their parent's will never be together again. Parent's may never truly realize the impact that getting a new step family has on the people around them, maybe even their other relatives. It certainly makes for a completely new re-socialization of lives for the people who are affected by this.
In attempting to understand the blended family system, one would be remised if we did not first look at, and understand primarily what a family system dynamic is. Unfortunately, this is a theory that once had very clear cut lines; today those lines are a little burred and more subjective than ever before. Given that the family is an ever changing system with fluid boarders, this author will illustrate some finite distinctions that may separate the typical family system from a blended family system. Family systems have been studied since psychologists began studying people and their behaviors.
The Family Law Legislation Amendment Act of 2011 and whether it has Reduced Violence and Abuse for Women and Children
“Children of divorce are more than twice as likely to have serious social, emotional, or psychological problems as children of intact families…” (Parke, Mary, “Are Married Parents Really Better for Children?” p. 4). Not receiving the support and nurturing that is needed from both parents during adolescents can affect the future decisions made by children at a later stage in their lives. The guidance that is needed for children to make their life long decisions such as continuing education, certain situation thinking processes and decisions. Divorced parents will face loss of income compared to a two parent income, depression, and self-acceptance. Separating mothers and fathers in a childbearing family will lead the mother or father to having to split the roles or replace the role of the other parent in the household while the child might only be allowed to live with one parent for a certain amount of time. Single parent childbearing families face dependency among government support programs while the single parent may or may not be receiving child support that alone is not enough to remove the financial burden that single parents incur. Children often find this difficult having to move back and forth from two homes rather than having one home. Single parents who may later decide to marry often times face large scale problems as a result of becoming blended. This includes methods of parenting
In “When Branches Tangle in a Stepfamily Tree” (2012) Elissa Gootman talks about the life style and the relationship keeping for stepfamilies and members. In general, the stepfamily refers two adults stay in a same house either married or cohabiting with at least one child who is come from previous family (Ch 13, P410).
I have chosen to use an article from The Huffington Post called How Stepmoms Can Cope With ‘Biological Jealousy’. This is a meaningful article that is intended to explain the struggles that stepmoms and their stepchildren often face. It is noted that the main struggle of the relationship between a step parent and their step children is “Biological Jealousy”. Often the step parent tries to replace or become the primary Parent. The article provides solutions for increasing the moral and creating a stronger bond between children and their step parent.
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
In 1990, seventy-one percent of sixty-four million American children lived in a two parent household. Fifty-eight percent lived with their biological parents. Since the 1970s, there has been a huge increase in the amount of children living with single or divorced mothers. This only is right considering the increase in single women having children, although not all of those women don’t have a significant other. Currently 7.3 percent of children live with an unmarried parent, 9.1 percent live with a divorced parent and 7.4 percent live with a separated or widowed parent. Every year since the 1970s, over one million children have been affected by divorce (Shino and Quinn). Nowadays every where you look, someone has divorced parents. It could be your own parents, your best friend’s parents, your classmate’s parents or even your teacher. In 1988, fifteen percent of children lived with a separated or divorced parent, while 7.3 million more children lived with a stepparent. It is estimated that almost half of the babies born today will spend a portion of their life living in a one-parent family (Shino and
A stepfamily occurs when parent’s divorce and later remarry bringing children from the previous marriage together to form a new family. In the twenty-first century, a stepchild is considered part of the immediate familial household when the biological parent is detached from the child but the stepparent is available. This is one type of non-traditional family. While they may not be traditional they can be equally supportive and caring. Multigenerational families are a group of relatives that live together and share in the household chores. Many families are now opting to move senior parents into their own homes instead of a retirement community because the bonds that have been generated throughout life help the seniors state of mind. A complex family has three or more adults living in the same household plus their children. This can happen through divorce and remarriage and through polygamy in countries where polygamy is legal. Adults that for various reasons cannot have children bring a child into their home to love and care for or one parent can legally adopt the biological child of the other parent. This is considered an adopted family and while there may be no blood relation it still has legal viability. Fosterage is also a branch of adoption where a family will temporarily bring another child into their home until more permanent
It’s the way the world is headed. There’s a high divorce rate in what I’m going into, at the same time everyone in that field needs someone to take care of their family while there away. I’ll deal with cultures all around the world, most very different from the US. In the professional services I will deal with, the impact on delivery is not allowed. Yes everyone needs to get their family squared away and keep everything good at home but when it’s time to go to work everyone needs to be focused on the job and nothing else. The way we Americans do things could offend those on other countries and they might not be as respectful as they need to be and this could make communication a bit harder. What I have learned is that blended families are not as financially sound as I thought they would be. I thought that after a divorce both parties would take some time to get squared away before remarrying but apparently that’s not the case. Personally this assignment might improve my capacity to deal with other people but professionally it doesn’t matter much. The people in my field can’t afford to let little things get in the way. While family is not little itself, in the scheme of things there are much more important things happening in the world that need
According to Mental Health Professional Michelle Blessing, “there is no right or wrong answers when it comes to what is the best type of family structure. As long as a family is filled with love and support for one another, it tends to be successful and thrive. Families need to do what is best for each other and themselves, and that can be achieved in almost any unit” (Blessing). Families offer companionship, security, and a measure of protection against an often uncaring world, but family structure has undergone significant changes since World War II. Variations in family structure are now plentiful -- and yet often still quite successful. Whatever the family situation, whatever the familial structure, it will have tremendous and unique influence upon the child’s happiness, development, and future.
Parents are known to have a big impact on their chills’ life. As children grow up they learn from their parents and model behaviors that they see after them. Relationships between child and parent are also an important factor in child development. Many believe that having same-sex parent impacts a child’s life. I do not believe that the sexual orientation of a parent either negatively or positively impact the child but the relation between the child and the parent has the most impact on a child’s life not the sexual orientation of the parent. Having same-sex parents does not negatively impact children. Parent children relationship has shown to be important indicators on friendships, how well a child does in school, and also a predictor of
There are so many different types of family relationships. Whatever form a family takes; it is an important part of everyone’s life. My family has played an important role in my life. Good family relationships serve as a foundation to interactions with others. Supportive families will help children to thrive. The quality of the family relationship is more important than the size of the family. Making the relationships priority, communication, and providing support for one another is key to developing relationships. Family relationships are what make up our world today; they shape the ways that we see things and the ways that we do things.
There are many different types of family relationships out there. The way that you embrace the type of family you grow up in is what will shape your future. The different types of family relationships have an effect both good and bad on everyone inside of that family. Over time, many families have broken the “rules” by divorcing or having children without being married. These two things are big changes considering 100 or even 50 years ago, it wasn’t heard of. Also, many years ago there was no such thing as “different families.” There was a mom, dad, and children. Nowadays, that is definitely not always the case.