BECOMING PARENTS Unit 4 – Chapter 10

When Couples Become Parents The couple relationship changes after the birth of a child as the new baby makes demands on the time and emotional energy of their parents Stress results from interactions between individuals and their environment that they perceive as straining or exceeding their ability to adapt and threatening their well being

When Couples Become Parents One of the contributing factors to stress is role overload, which occurs when individuals try to carry out multiple roles Both men and women who are new parents experience some level of role overload

When Couples Become Parents Many couples experience some decrease in marital satisfaction after the birth of a child One of the causes of change in the couple relationship is the lack of couple time Along with lack of personal time, time with extended family, time with friends and time commitments at work

Planned vs. Unplanned Pregnancy Couples who planned their pregnancies experience less significant decline in marital satisfaction than those who experienced unplanned parenthood Men experience less stress during the transition when the pregnancy was planned An individual’s ability to control role overload also reduces the level of stress

Planned vs. Unplanned Pregnancy Unplanned pregnancy is more common in cohabiting relationships When cohabiting couples become parents, there tends to be more stress during pregnancy than after the child is born 66% of pregnancies are planned

Major Changes to Couple Relationships Many couples revert to more traditional gender roles after the birth of a child Decline in family income Reduced frequency and quality of couple time Less time for couple communication Sexual intercourse is less frequent Leaving the workforce for an extended period

Major Changes to Couple Relationships Lack of anticipatory socialization can mean new parents will not feel as competent in their new roles as parents as they do in their workplace roles Anticipatory socialization is when an individual learns and practices a new role before actually adopting it

Major Changes to Couple Relationships Relationships of cohabiting couples tend to be more equitable than married couples, the birth of a child does not cause the same kind of role overload for a cohabiting couple as for a married couple The best predictor of marital satisfaction during the transition to parenthood is marital satisfaction before parenthood

Parent-Child Relationships The relationship between parents and their children is one of the most significant relationships in life According to Erik Erikson, for most individuals, the transition to adulthood is complete when the individual takes on a significant caring relationship with a child Understanding this relationship is an important aspect of understanding the development of identity in adulthood Recall...

Erik Erikson’s 8 Psychosocial Stages of Development Stage 7 Ages: Middle Adulthood (40 – 65 years) Basic Conflict: Generativity vs. Stagnation Important Event: Work and Parenthood Outcome: Adults need to create or nurture things that will outlast them, often by having children or creating a positive change that benefits other people. Success leads to feelings of usefulness and accomplishment, while failure results in shallow involvement in the world.

Parent-Child Relationships Erikson described generativity as being concerned with establishing and guiding the next generation It reflects an individual’s psychosocial need of needing to take care of someone Having children is the usual means of achieving the strength of generativity rather than becoming self-absorbed Generativity can be achieved by making an enduring contribution to society in other ways

Parent-Child Relationships Parent-child relationships meet the needs of the broader society Parent-child relationships are the core of 5 out of the 6 Family Functions Socialization Control Behaviour Reproduction Affective Nurturance Provide Care CHANGE TO 5, ADD REPRODUCTION

Attachment Attachment is an enduring emotional bond between an infant and their caregiver According to Erikson, the infant-caregiver relationship is essential to the development of trust within the infant If the relationship with the caregiver is a stable one, in which the needs of the infant are met, then the foundation for future positive relationships is laid Recall...

Erik Erikson’s 8 Psychosocial Stages of Development Stage 1 Ages: Infancy (birth – 18 months) Basic Conflict: Trust vs. Mistrust Important Event: Feeding Outcome: Children develop a sense of trust when caregivers provide reliability, care, and affection. A lack of this will lead to mistrust.

Attachment The quality of the bond between caregiver and child is the foundation of personality growth and determines how well the child adjusts later in life Infants whose needs are not met develop mistrust and see the world as undependable, unpredictable and possibly dangerous Parents who are striving for generativity contribute to society by providing a secure attachment for their children and by helping them to be healthy well-adjusted adults FOUNDATION OF PERSONALITY GROWTH, SECURE/INSECURE ATTACHMENT OLD TEXT

Attachment Attachment research has tended to focus on the mother-infant bond and has almost completely ignored the father-infant bond Studies have found that secure infants have fathers that were more extroverted and agreeable, had higher levels of self-esteem and had more positive marriages These fathers had positive work and family boundaries, with work demands that did not come before family commitments

Attachment Fathers who developed a commitment to their infants during pregnancy maintained it after birth and were more likely to be involved in infant care These fathers tended to be more caring, nurturing, child oriented and affectionate than non-involved fathers

Parenting Styles Diana Baumrind described 3 basic styles of parenting that were identified based on beliefs about the reciprocal attitudes of parent and child, the sharing of power and the desirable degree of conformity to social norms

Parenting Styles Authoritative Parenting Characterized by warmth and acceptance Authoritative parents exert indirect positive control of the children as they encourage them to control their own behaviour in accordance with norms Authoritative parents see children as capable of making choices to conform to a fair society

Parenting Styles Authoritarian Parenting Distinguished by a more formal interaction Expectation of obedience to norms More parental control Use of punishment Authoritarian parents believe that children should obey authorities but are easily tempted to misbehave, so they need firm direction

Parenting Styles Permissive Parenting Typified by relaxed relationships between parents and children Few rules Children have a larger share of power in the family

Parenting Styles Children raised by authoritative parents are better adjusted psychologically and have a better self-concept Authoritarian parents use more physical punishment, which can create fear, children who experience this type of parenting may feel rejected by their parents Children raised by authoritarian parents tend to have difficulty making their own decisions

Parenting Styles Children raised by permissive parents who offer warmth and encouragement tend to be more irresponsible and impulsive While children raised by permissive parents who are hostile and rejecting tend to be flighty, anxious and emotionally deprived Permissive parenting does not teach children to become self-reliant and responsible for their actions

Teen Mom According to Baumrind, what type of parenting styles does Amber follow?

Teen Mom According to Baumrind, what type of parenting styles does Gary follow?

Teen Mom According to Baumrind, what type of parenting styles does Catelynn’s mother, April, follow?

Teen Mom According to Baumrind, what type of parenting styles does Maci follow?

Teen Mom According to Baumrind, what type of parenting styles does Farrah follow?

Teen Mom According to Baumrind, what type of parenting styles does Farrah’s mother follow?

Teenaged Parents There has been a steady decline in the rate of teenage parenthood in Canada The proportion of teens who become sexually active at an early age is decreasing Teens are reporting increasing use of condoms The rate of abortions has surpassed the rate of live births for those aged 15 to 17 Most teenaged parents are one-parent, female-headed families Many parents of teenaged parents gave birth in their teens as well Teenaged parents have lower education and significantly lower income than older parents

Socialization of Children Socializing children is one of the most important functions of the family and the key responsibility of parents Socialization is the process throughout life by which an individual learns the knowledge, skills, attitudes, culture, values and appropriate social role behaviours in order to participate in society

Socialization of Children As societies became more complex and as parents leave home to work, socialization is shared with other social institutions Ex. religion & education Parents socialize their children by influencing and shaping their behaviour and children socialize their parents in a similar manner

Socialization of Children There are 2 preconditions for socialization: The child must have the physical capacity to learn The child must live in a society that has values, norms, statuses, roles, institutions and a variety of social structures If a child is missing any of these preconditions, then socialization is not possible

Gender Socialization Parents are the main agents of socialization for their children’s gender roles Babies are socialized from the moment they enter this world to be masculine or feminine Children view the tasks performed by their parents in the home and come to gender-based conclusions about who should perform which jobs Parents may encourage gender-role stereotypical behaviour without even knowing it

The Mother’s Role Women are traditionally the primary caregivers to children in all cultures, for many, parenting and mothering are the same However, as more and more North American women stay in the workforce after the birth of their children, they are no longer at home to be the sole caregiver The stay-at-home mom is now an anomaly It is no longer assumed that the mother has to take the primary role, rather, parents negotiate their roles

The Mother’s Role The Mommy War takes place within a new mother as she struggles to balance her desires and the pressures of society Some women who choose to stay home feel judged and devalued by women who return to work, while at the same time women who choose to work feel judged by women who stay home

The Father’s Role In the past, the father’s role were that of breadwinner and the head of the household Today, couples play more equal roles in the family, and both parents are heads of the household Parents now consider themselves co-parents and co-providers for their children Fathers and mothers interact differently with their children

The Father’s Role Fathers tend to be more physically engaged and less emotional with their children than mothers are Play with fathers involves more teamwork and games, stressing healthy competition, risk taking and independence This type of play is said to help children develop the ability to manage their emotions and to improve their intelligence and academic achievement

The Father’s Role Fathering is a social construct that changes with the times and the culture The new image is based on a father’s feelings, experiences and relationships with his children One of the problems facing men adjusting to the new father role was the lack of role models Men learn to be fathers by watching their fathers

Parental Roles in Lone-Parent Families The number of children living in lone-parent families is increasing, while the age at which they do so is decreasing Children born to common-law unions are 3 times more likely to experience the break-up of their parents’ relationship than children born to married couples A father is present in 78% of Canadian families

Parental Roles in Same-Sex Families Since their are no preconceived roles for same-sex parents, they can negotiate their roles together Being raised by same-sex couples has not been shown to increase the odds that the children will be homosexual Children of same-sex couples usually have role models of both sexes

Test Outline Material Covered: Photocopied Text – Looking Back at Expanding Families (Children in Our European Heritage...) Chapter 9 Power Point (Having Children) *ONLY UP TO DELAYED PARENTHOOD Chapter 9 Continued Power Point (The Decision to Parent) Chapter 10 Power Point (Becoming Parents)

Test Outline Format 10 Multiple Choice 5 Short Answer