Children and ParentsChildren and ParentsChildren and ParentsChildren and Parents

Why have children?Why have children?The parental roleThe parental roleTransition to parenthoodTransition to parenthoodWhat children needWhat children needSocializationSocialization

parenting stylesparenting stylesclass and race differencesclass and race differencesimpact of child careimpact of child care

Economics and children’s well beingEconomics and children’s well being

Why have children?

Economic Model• Decision to have children based on:

– Income– Resource constraints– "Taste" for children

• Parents may trade quantity for quality

Nine Values of Children(Hoffman and Hoffman)

1. Primary group ties2. Stimulation and fun3. Expansion of self4. Adult status, identity5. Achievement, creativity6. Morality, social duty7. Power and influence8. Status, prestige9. Financial security

The Parental Role

Stages in most adult roles• Anticipation• Honeymoon• Plateau• Disengagement

Rossi -The Parent Role is Different:

• Acquired overnight• No anticipatory stage• No formal preparation• No clear disengagement• Irrevocable: can't send them back

How Infants Changed Families

(LaRossa and LaRossa)

• Changed conceptions of time• Traditionalized division of labor• Mother embraced role; father

distanced himself• Mothers did more "hands-on“ care• Mothers perceived infants as more

competent.

What children need from parents:

• Material support• Emotional support• Structure/discipline• Values

Socialization• Primary socialization = teaching

the culture to young child• Involves

– Language/communication– Behaviors– Norms– Values

• Includes support and control

Parenting Styles(Baumrind)

• Authoritative: high support, consistent moderate discipline, parent as authority

• Permissive: high support, low discipline, parent as companion

• Authoritarian: low support, high discipline, parent in control

Traditional (Adult-Centered) Socialization

• Goal: Raise a competent adult.• Assumption: Children naturally "wild" and

must be controlled.• Values: obedience, neatness, respect of

peers, discipline oriented to behavior, unsponsored independence.

• Style: Authoritarian, "Parent Power“• Similar to: “working class,” “natural

growth”

Developmental (Child-Centered) Socialization

• Goal: Develop child's potential.• Assumption: child has unique capabilities • Values: Self-direction, creativity,

problem-solving, intellectual ability, sponsored independence, discipline oriented to motive.

• Style: authoritarian or permissive, participatory, democratic.

• Similar to: “middle class,” “concerted cultivation,” “intensive mothering”

Fathers and Socialization

• Fathers interact differently with kids• More play; “rough and tumble”• Influence is less direct or immediate• More direct involvement = benefit to child• Direct involvement more difficult for dads• Little research on other adults as “dads:”

(e.g. lesbian partner, grandmother, etc.)

“Good Dads – Bad Dads”2 modern father roles:

1. Involved Father:• Originated in colonial times• Lost after industrialization• Considered voluntary• Personal and economic sacrifice• Emotionally rewarding• Still less involved than mother

2 modern father roles:

2. Absent Father:• Results from voluntary fatherhood.• Supported by women's employment

and welfare.• Related to men's job opportunities.• Less attached to children.• More common among Blacks.• Harmful to children, women, and men.

How Can We Increase Fathers’ Involvement?

• Cultural change: parenting as men's work• Individual change: learning parental skills• Marital change: wives' support and

encouragement• Structural change: incentives and

opportunities for fathering – “responsive workplace”

Child Care and Children’s Development

Older toddlers, Preschoolers • Quality care has few or no

negative effects.• Learn social skills earlier.• Learn nontraditional roles.• May be more assertive and

aggressive.• May become peer-oriented earlier.

Child Care and Children’s Development

Infants, young toddlers

• Findings are less conclusive• Probably no negative effects if hours

are limited• Infants were less socially responsive,

attentive, verbally expressive• May have implications for attachment

The Well-Being of American Children

• Has well-being declined?– Compared with when?– Which children?

What is “well-being?”• Health care – probably better

overall, but not for working poor • Income – rising standard of

living, but mostly at the top• Intact families – proportion is

decreasing

Poor prospects for children with:

• An unmarried mother• A teen mother• A mother without a high school

degree• A family income below the poverty

line

Good prospects for children with:

• A married mother• A mother who was 26 or older when

1st child was born• A mother who completed college• family income > 4 times the poverty

rate

Children in the Middle

• Downward drift since 1960s• More divorce, single parent families• More mothers working outside the

home• Maybe less parental time• Moderate decline in economic status

Summary• People have children to enhance their lives• Transition to parenthood is very significant • Socialization increasingly child-centered,

developmental• Fathers’ role significant, indirect• Voluntary notion of fatherhood• Child care has some effects on development• Mixed prospects for child well-being