5/30/2011

The Family as a System

• Family Systems Theory
– A “whole” consisting of interrelated parts
CHAPTER 15 – Each affects and is affected by the others

THE FAMILY
• Nuclear family: Mother, father, children
• Extended family household
• Ecological systems approach
– Family as system within a system
• Family as a changing system

More Family Diversity Trends

• More single adults, empty nesters included • Decline of Marriage and Family
• Postponed marriage, Fewer children – Negative effects
• More years without children • Divorce, single parent family, poverty
• More women working, More divorce: 4/10 • Purpose of Marriage Debate
• More remarriages, reconstituted families – Meet emotional needs of adults?
• More single-parent families, child poverty – Raise children?
• More multigenerational (beanpole) families • Postponed marriage improves success rate
• Fewer caregivers for aging adults • More equality of sexes in family roles

Infancy: Relationships
• Fathers are capable of sensitive parenting
– A more playful parent role
• Mothers spend more time with them
• Divorce means less fathering
• Fathers’ warmth and affection promotes:
– Social competence, achievement
– Fewer psychological disorders
• Indirect effects: How parents get along
• A model of the relationship among family economic stress, patterns of parenting, and
adolescent adjustment.

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Parenting Styles
Learning Objectives
• What are two basic dimensions of parenting? • Two Dimensions of Parenting
• What patterns of child rearing emerge from – Acceptance/Responsiveness (AC)
these dimensions? – Demandingness/Control (DC)
• How do these parenting styles affect • Baumrind’s Parenting Types
children’s development?
– Authoritarian: AC=high, DC=low
• How does social class affect parenting style?
– Authoritative: AC=high, DC=high
– Permissive: AC=low, DC=high
– Neglectful: AC=low, DC=low

Outcomes of Parenting Styles

• Children of authoritative parents
– Adjusted, responsible, high achievement
• Children of authoritarian parents
– Moody, unhappy, aimless
• Children of permissive parents
– Low: self-control, independent, achievers
• Children of neglectful/uninvolved parents
– Behavior problems, antisocial
• The acceptance/responsiveness and demandingness/control dimensions of parenting. Which
combination best describes your parents’ approach?

Effects of Social Class Models of Influence on Family

• Lower-SES Parents • Parent Effects Model
– Stress obedience to authority – Parental influence and style important
– Restrictive and authoritarian • Child Effects Model
– Use reasoning less – Nature of child stressed
– Show less warmth/affection • Transactional Model
• Middle-SES Parents – Reciprocal influences
– Stress individual initiative, achievement

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Sibling Relationships
• Firstborn stress at new sibling
– Temporary behavior problems
– Sibling rivalry
– Less conflict by adolescence
– Typically ambivalent about sibling
• Overall, mostly positive effects of having a
sibling
– Emotional support, teacher to younger
Establishing Marriage and Family
• In the US, 90% of adults choose to marry
– Honeymoon: Happy but short
• Problems: Loss of enthusiasm
– Usually exist beforehand
– Negativity common
• New Parenthood
– Stressful, joyful
– Coping skills, resources important
Grandparenthood
• Average age: 47
• Grand-parenting styles
– Remote (29%): Distant
– Companionate (55%): Frequent, enjoyable
visits
– Involved (16%): Child care, advise, like
substitute parents
• Most find it gratifying
• Parent/grandparent relationship important
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The Adolescent
• Typically, close relationships with parents
• Conflicts mostly over minor issues
• Change in balance of power
• Authoritative parent most effective
• Autonomy, independence achieved
Child Rearing and Launching
• A heavier workload for parents
• More stress in life generally
• Marital happiness declines
• Best if both parents share home workload
• The Empty Nest
– Marital happiness increases after the
children leave home
Marriage Relationships
• Marriage Brings Stability
– Happier, healthier, than non-marrieds
– Lonelier if divorced or widowed
– Better off financially
• Widowhood: By about age 65
– 73% of men still living with their wives
– 59% of women widowed or living alone
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Sibling and Parent-Child Relationships
• Siblings: Longest-lasting relationship we have
– If close in childhood, also as adults
– Not close in childhood, not close as adults
• Parent-Child Remain Close
– Modified extended family
• Caring for Aging Parents
– “Middle generation squeeze”
– Filial responsibility common
Divorce
• High-Risk Couples
– Married about 7 years
– Teen-age marriages, short courtship
– Pregnant before marriage
– Low SES
• Post-Divorce Crisis
– 1-2 years
– Parents, children, at risk for depression
Family Violence
• Child abuse: Much unreported
– Sexual abuse
• Spouse Abuse
– Most common worldwide
• Elder Abuse and Neglect
– Cognitive impairment a risk factor
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Diversity in Family Life
• Cohabitation: On the rise
– Higher divorce rate if they marry
• Childless married couples
– Marital satisfaction higher
• Dual-career families: Spillover effects
– Both positive and negative
• Gay and lesbian families: More egalitarian
– Children generally well adjusted
Children of Divorce
• Often angry, fearful, depressed, or guilty
• Custodial mother/father overwhelmed
• Behavior problems
• Peer relationships suffer/change
• Sometimes negative effects are lasting
• Usually a 1-2 year adjustment
The Abuser
• Typical child abuser
– Young, single, poor, unemployed mother
• Cycle of abuse
• Often a battered woman
• Low self-esteem
• Unrealistic expectations
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The Abused
• Target Child
– Hyperactive, difficult
– Often disabled or sickly
• Parent feels powerless
• Parent feels threatened

• Responses to distressed peers observed in abused and non-abused toddlers in day care.
Abused children distinguish themselves by a lack of concern and a tendency to become
upset, angry, and aggressive when other children cry.

The Context of Abuse Effects of Family Violence

• Life changes • Physical damage to abused
• Poverty – Brain damage – shaken baby syndrome
• A violent society • Child behavior problems common
• Lack of social support • Social and cognitive skills deficient
– Academic problems common
• Lack of normal empathy – young children
– Emotional development disturbed
• Problematic for normal development

• Empowerment training for low-income mothers under stress reduces harsh parenting
practices, especially among mothers who are the most at risk of being abusive because
their babies had medical problems or were born prematurely.