Parenting of Adolescent Single Children: A Mixed-methods Study

Abstract

Globally, the average number of children per household is expected to drop to 1.0 by 2020. Single-child families are increasingly the norm, with nearly half of British families classified as single-child. Despite this, research on only-children and their families is scant. Using a convergent mixed-methods design, this study explores parenting of adolescents in British single-child families. Single-child (31 adolescents, 47 mothers, 25 fathers) and multiple-children families (46 adolescents, 76 mothers, 31 fathers) completed online surveys. In-depth interviews were also conducted with 15 only-child families and 15 multiple-child families. All adolescents were aged 11 years to 14 years. Surveys did not find any differences in parenting between one-child and multiple-children families. However, interview data found single-child families were more child-centered, reporting higher overprotective and pushy parenting, but less authoritative and authoritarian parenting. Findings challenge negative stereotyping of single-child families and provide an in-depth insight into the experiences of adolescent only-children and their parents.