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)
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...
Over the past decades, the patterns of family structure have changed dramatically in the United States. The typical nuclear family, two married parents with children living together in one household, is no longer the structure of the majority of the families today. The percentage of single-parent families, step-families and adopted families has increased significantly over the years. The nuclear family is a thing of the past. Family situations have tremendous influence upon a child’s academic achievement, behavior and social growth.
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)
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).
Today, in a world of the “postmodern family” the traditional lines of family structure are blurred. Children may come from diverse types of homes, or a couple, married or not may choose to have no children and consider themselves a family. The roots of these modern families may stem from ethnic origins, sexual orientations, or even seen as a rebellion of sorts from traditional ways. Children may live in homes of single parents, which is an exceedingly more common phenomenon as the divorce rate well publicized at around fifty percent. They may also live with homosexual parents either as a biological child of one partner or adopted by both. Also, the traditional married couple may choose to adopt locally or internationally, potentially blending ethnic backgrounds into one household. Whatever the background of the new nuclear family the challenges and experiences follow similar patterns.
The phrase “Nuclear Family” is a concept whose true complexity seems to have escaped our intellectual grasps until recent decades. Before, this model of familial relations was regarded as the standard or the cultural norm that no one seemed to question because this was the way it had been done, in most societies, since people could remember. Today though, with our ever-evolving cultures and belief systems, the ideology of and behind a nuclear family has come into question. What is or should be the true definition of a nuclear family? Is a nuclear family really the best way to raise children and sustain society? Are there any negative aspects of the nuclear family model that we may have not considered, and if so, what are they? These questions and others have become the center of a worldwide debate regarding family systems and diversity; the interesting part is the subjectivity of this topic and the amount of factors that affect the arguments from both sides, making it difficult to reach any sort of viable conclusion. Our modern world rapidly evolves in both subjects of technology and sociopolitical ideology, causing questions such as these to be subject to many different perspectives and thus causing many different reactions.
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.
The American family structure has seen major changes in the ideals, values and ethics pertaining family life. The modern day family in an American societal setting does not only show a break from the ideal family values but also a significant level of democracy, individuality and independence depending from which perspective the situation is being analyzed. The modern day prevalence of single-parent headed families, the political role of women, the struggle on non-white societies in America against discrimination and racism, the feminist movements for the enforcement of friendlier policies and the definition of gender roles in the family paint a picture of the difference between the family life in America 50 years ago and the contemporary family values (Clavan, 1972). The increasing numbers of non-traditional families has been a major component on public discourse pertaining women who bear children out of wedlock. The issue however, has majorly been blamed on a number of sociological problems such as unemployment, high rates of juvenile crimes, poor health and a series of school drop-out (Lopata & Norr, 1980).
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.
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 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.
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.
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.
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
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