"Without a Father Figure"
By Newton Sander
Newton Sander
Professor Hickman
Lesson Eleven
"A father figure is setting the blueprint, the model, the standard, the way for you to become a man and take on the world for yourself." (Jadakiss) Exploring the topic of a child being raised without a father shows the negative effects in the child's mentality, it can also impact the child's needs, and have a permanent influence on the child and their ideas of right and wrong for their adult life. In this paper there will be explanations to each topic and the issues they can cause.
A child may have greater mental issues, such as anxiety and despair, if their family is fatherless. Children without fathers may begin to feel inferior to other children who have fathers and question why their father left them. An increased risk of suicide and/or self-harming behaviors may also result from this. The likelihood of aggression and other externalizing issues in children who do not have a father in their upbringing is also higher. If they witness or hear their parents arguing, children from fatherless homes are also more likely to experience depression, suicidal thoughts, anxiety, social isolation, and missed school days. In a subsequent article, the effects of divorce on children's mental health will be covered. (Brown, Jerrod)
The absence of a father in the house may have a detrimental effect on a child's general academic performance, according to the evidence. In comparison to children who live in two-parent households, research has indicated that children from homes where the father is absent are more likely to drop out of school. Higher education is likewise less likely to be pursued by kids from fatherless families. It is crucial to remember that African American males who view their father as an example have much higher-grade point averages and have lower absentee rates.
Children brought up without father figures may develop resentment for them because of feeling abandoned. This anger may get stronger because of these sentiments, which may start off as a lack of trust. These issues may lead to involvement with the criminal justice system, use of illegal substances, as well as several mental health issues when a child enters adolescence and young adulthood. These effects might lead to interpersonal problems, such as the inability to form close social ties. For instance, abandonment-related anger might make it challenging for young people to set up relationships and friendships.
The research, conducted by Hio Wa "Grace" Mak, a doctorate candidate in human development and family studies, explored how teenage social anxiety, friendships, and loneliness changed over time in relation to parental rejection and the health of the family. At Penn State's Prevention Research Center, Mak collaborated with Mark Feinberg, research professor of health and human development, and associate professor of human development and family studies Gregory Fosco. (State, Penn)
Self-esteem problems might result from the psychological impacts of growing up without a father. When their fathers are absent from their lives, kids frequently report feeling abandoned, experiencing emotional difficulties, and going through sporadic episodes of self-loathing. This causes children to have low self-esteem when they think about what they are missing. Another reason children have low self-esteem is from feeling of not being wanted or like they belong with their friends.
Unquestionably, most women today-married or not, with kids ranging in age from babies to teenagers-work outside the home. Since the number of workers has nearly doubled between 1948 and 2001, families no longer require as much financial support from fathers. Over 77 percent of women with children under the age of eighteen are working today, and 76 percent of these women work full-time throughout the year. To provide for themselves and their children, single moms must be able to support themselves financially. For custodial parents who receive child support, the typical amount is $4,700 per year.
Children from absent-father households are four times more likely to be living in poverty, according to data from the U.S. Census Bureau (2011). Children with absent fathers sometimes have fewer professional ties to support them in the workforce. Furthermore, research has revealed that divorce and poverty are mostly unrelated to the reason for the father's absence. Children who want to pursue well-paying occupations face obstacles due to poverty, which can lead to more stress and dissatisfaction. Children that grow up to commit shoplifting repeatedly may come from households where the father is absent.
The changes in family structure brought about by changing ideas on marriage and family, higher rates of divorce, remarriage, and stepfamilies, childbearing outside of marriage, and more women entering the workforce have had a profound impact on fathers' roles and families. Many dads have transitioned from conventional to various responsibilities because of changing family structures, increasing female autonomy, and associated phenomena like falling fertility. Dads in the twenty-first century are starting to adopt paternal responsibilities that are quite different from those of fathers in previous generations. (ukdiss.com)
Children from fatherless families are more likely to have higher body mass indices (BMI). A father's parenting style, according to a different study, was a stronger indicator of whether a kid will develop obesity. Compared to dads who were absent or only sometimes active, those who were present and utilized more authoritarian parenting methods had kids who were physically fitter. Parenting methods used by mothers had little to no impact on obesity and fitness levels.
Parents have a profound influence on their children's weight status and lifestyle behaviors through their own behaviors, parenting practices, and role in shaping the food and physical activity environment at home.14-16 As such, identifying the most effective ways to engage parents in pediatric obesity treatment and prevention has become a key area of research. Although there is some evidence for the efficacy of family-based approaches,17,18 the optimal nature of parental involvement remains unclear.13,19 In particular, researchers have called for greater and more meaningful involvement of fathers,20-22 who are assumed to participate less often than mothers in research studies. (Morgan, Philip J, et al)
Many people think that not having a father in one's life is the "root cause" of crime, drinking, using drugs, and having sex. Boys are more likely to engage in criminal behavior when their fathers are absent. Children who have just one parent are more likely to engage in risky activities, such as delinquency, drinking and using drugs. Children may be exposed to maladaptive emotional coping mechanisms, impulsive behaviors, or act out emotionally when there is intense family conflict. They may also struggle with the disruption of family life and may have less parental supervision, which may encourage them to engage in risky or delinquent behavior.
An additional issue associated to fatherlessness is juvenile criminality. Juvenile criminality is especially influenced by parental absence because of insufficient parental monitoring. Delinquency and major crimes suffer when fathers are absent. Children who are violent are six times more likely to have parents who are not married and eleven times more likely to not live with their fathers. It is more likely a risk factor for adolescent-limited delinquent conduct rather than a more significant life course delinquency given the father's absence's modest impact on delinquent behavior later in life.
Drug usage among teenagers increased in the 1960s and has since continued to climb. Compared to children from dual-parent homes, children from single-parent families have a significantly higher risk of drug use. This universality applied to several substances. Children from intact homes used inhalants, marijuana, and amphetamines less frequently than children from single-parent households. Compared to girls living in mother-only or dual-parent families, girls in father-only households used illegal drugs much more frequently. When compared to father-present children, over half (47.3%) of the men whose dads were gone from the household were classified as high-rate marijuana users, using marijuana once daily (29.3 percent). When compared to males, girls consume marijuana at a similar rate regardless of whether a foster parent is present.
Juvenile delinquency is predicted by family structure and the absence of father engagement. A youngster is less likely to commit a crime or come into touch with the juvenile justice system the more opportunities he or she has to engage with his or her biological father. In a survey of female prisoners, more than half came from homes where the father was absent. The greatest rates of adolescent imprisonment are among those who have never lived with a father, whereas youths in father-only families show no different incarceration rates from those of children from two-parent households. Children from households where the father is absent are also more likely to start taking drugs when they are younger.
"According to the National Criminal Justice Reference System, "70% of juveniles in state-operated institutions come from fatherless homes."" (Debruin Law) Since ancient times, criminologists and social psychologists have sought to understand the causes of criminal conduct. What makes a person commit a crime? Is it a combination of genetics, peer pressure, familial pressure, or other environmental factors? The responses have varied, but one factor-stable, good ties with family-has consistently been found to be an exceptionally reliable indicator of criminal or antisocial conduct. It should come as no surprise that children who lack these connections, like those without dads, are more likely to commit crimes.
Investigating the issue of a kid raised without a father demonstrates the detrimental consequences on the child's mindset, as well as how it can affect the child's wants and have a lasting impact on the child's sense of right and wrong for the rest of their lives. Really makes you think if fathers would be responsible and take the role they were supposed to have.
Works Cited