1. Chatter 13, Parents and Children Over the Life Course Parents in Modern America Authoritative Parenting Stages of Parenting Social Class and Parenting Racial/Ethnic Diversity and Parenting Newly Visible Parenting Environments Toward Better Parent-Child Relationships

2. Factors That Make Parenting Difficult Employers place work demands before parenting demands. Parenting requires learning new attitudes and techniques. Society is characterized by diverse and conflicting values.

3. Factors That Make Parenting Difficult Wmphasis on the malleability of children makes parents feel anxious and guilty. Child-rearing experts sometimes disagree among themselves. Parents are given full responsibility for raising successful or good children, but their authority is often put to question.

4. Factors That Make Parenting Difficult Many parents are responsible for working, raising children and caring for aging parents. Differing family forms can cause parents special difficulties because they are different form the idealized norm of the intact, nuclear family.

5. Parenting Styles Authoritarian - low on emotional nurturing but high on parental direction and control Laissez-faire - permissive, allows children to set their own limits Authoritative -combines emotional nurturing and parental direction

6. Spanking More than 90% of U.S. parents spank their children. Boys under the age of two are spanked most often. Spanking is linked to depression, suicide, alcohol or drug abuse, and physical aggression against parents and intimate partners.

7. Stages of Parenting Transition to parenthood Parents with babies Parents with preschoolers Parents with school-age children Parents with adolescents Parents with young adult children

8. New Parenting Environments Gay and Lesbian Parents Grandparent parents Foster Parents

9. Gay and Lesbian Parents Number of children of gay and lesbian parents ranges from 6 to 14 million. Polls show that 36% of American and 90% of gays and lesbians believe that gay couples should be able to adopt.

10. Factors in Good Parenting Adequate economic resources. Being involved in a child’s life and school. Using supportive, rather than negative communication between partners in the family. Support from family and/or friends.