Number Of Single-parent Families Research Articles

Rethinking the Concept of Families: A Sociological Study of Single Parenting in India

Single parent families are considered as a taboo in most of the societies especially when a family is a single parent family. Single parent families face tremendous challenges to sustain a family. They come across social, economic, psychological and several other challenges. When the challenges become grave and surrounds from all directions the achievements are overshadowed, this is what happens to a single parent. The hard work, success and achievements diminish behind the challenges posed by society and situations on a single parent. In this paper focus is put on the reasons behind increasing number of single parent families in India especially single mother headed families. The author in the paper brings forward the development of a new form of parenting in Indian society, using secondary research method and descriptive research design.

The Intergenerational Transmission of Gender Roles: Evidence From Parents and Children in Single-Parent.

Given the current increases in the divorce rate and the number of single-parent families, the development of gender roles among children from single-parent families has received more and more attention. This study investigated how single parents influenced the formation of their children's gender roles and family-related factors that benefited the development of gender roles in single-parent children. Through in-depth interviews with 24 pairs of parents and children from single-parent families, we investigated single parents' and their children's cognition on gender roles, parents' parenting attitudes and behaviors during their children's gender role development, and communication and interaction between parents and children. Results showed intergenerational consistency in the gender role concepts of parents and their children in single-parent families. However, the children's gender role concepts were not completely and directly inherited from their parents, and could be affected by their subjective initiative. Additionally, single parenting did not necessarily negatively impact children's gender role development, which depends on their parent's parenting style. The study's limitations are discussed, and future directions for in-depth research are suggested.

Кризис семейных отношений в современном обществе как одно из условий низкой эффективности профилактики преступности несовершеннолетних

Introduction: The relevance of this article lies in the fact that the prevention of juvenile delinquency in modern Russia cannot be focused only on the perceptions of those families that lead a parasitic lifestyle or those with only one parent. Obviously, in order to increase the effectiveness of such prevention, attention should be paid not only to statistics on the personality of juvenile delinquents or the number of single-parent families and families with a negative environment line, but also to the factors that led to mistakes or shortcomings in family upbringing for the subsequent identification of causes and conditions of the type of crime.
 Methods: Various methods of knowledge were used in writing the article: dialectical, statistical and analytical methods. The material for the study was practical examples, normative legal acts, statistical data, as well as scientific researches of authors studying the problems of the crisis of family relations in modern society.
 Results: On the basis of general scientific dialectic method of cognition the crisis moments of family relations in modern society were considered, which are proposed to be a condition for delinquent behavior of minors and young people. It was found out that value orientations in family and issues of achievement of social status for its members are put in direct dependence of certain gender background or social trends, imposed by Internet-groups. The authors try to answer the question whether it is possible to predict juvenile delinquency by identifying families with signs of exclusion from external norms and rules of conduct for the subsequent preventive social influence or it is better to restrict preventive measures in relation to families with explicit signs of antisocial behavior.

PATTERNS IN CHILDREN RAISED BY SINGLE PARENTS: A TEACHER VIEW

Introduction: According to European statistics, the number of single-parent families has grown alarmingly. Raising a child alone is not necessarily devastating, but it is not comfortable either (Safta, 2018), numerous studies suggesting emotional, academic, behavioral effects on the child. Objective: This study examines teachers' observations regarding the behavioralcharacteristics of children growing up with a single parent (CSP). Method: 48 secondary school teachers, V-VIII class leaders participated in group discussions to explore aspects of the child's/student's life in the school setting. Qualitative thematic analysis was implemented using a grounded theory framework to identify areas of CSP life that may be affected. Results: Specific aspects of CSP were identified in the following learning, c) partnership with the family, d) early maturation e) exposure of the child to family conflicts

Seeking to Understand the Opposition to the Relief Society Activities of the Sesquicentennial Year

Seeking to Understand the Opposition to the Relief Society Activities of the Sesquicentennial Year

Divorce as an aspect of demographic behavior of the Volyn region population


 
 
 
 The article gives a general description and a detailed analysis of the divorce process of Volyn region population. The theoretical basis, demographic approaches to the study of divorce and divorce indicators in the region are analyzed. The importance of the divorces consequences and measures of demographic policy, which will be aimed at reducing them as a result of modernization of social and economic life in the current regime of reproduction: low birth rate and increasing life expectancy. Divorces peculiarities of Volyn region population are determined, the main of which are: sociological, psychological and demographic groups of risk factors for divorce. The main stages of family crises and their symptoms are described. The main negative consequences of divorce, which have an impact on the general demographic situation in the region are low birth rate (unrealized childbearing of divorced women); increase in the number of single-parent families in which the child is brought up by one parent; increasing the number of people who do not want to marry again after divorce; decrease of labor activity; deteriorating health, increased morbidity and death rate; increase suicides rate; increased risk of mental illness. It was found out the perspective psychological, legal forms and other assistance in marriage and family. The reasons for the low efficiency of the implementation of specific steps to overcome the processes of divorce in Volyn region are highlighted. Indicators for estimation of divorcing in the region have been calculated. Spatial-temporal data analysis of divorces for the period of 1995–2020 is carried out, regional features of their manifestation are singled out. The maps that reflect the spatial-temporal data differences of divorces in the regions were created. There were identified the main factors and preconditions for divorce in the region.
 
 
 

FORMATION OF RESPONSIBLE PARENTHOOD WHEN WORKING WITH YOUTH

In the process of historical progress, the family was and remains the most important social institution of society. The manifestation of interest in the processes taking place in the institution of the family is connected with the fact that it is assigned a determining role in the process of personality development. Therefore, the future of society depends on the family. Society defines parenthood as care, control and promotion of the child’s development. Every man and every woman who has reached sexual maturity has the potential to become parents. The birth of the first child can be a significant transitional event in the life of a man and a woman, it is during this period that they acquire the status of fatherhood and motherhood. The socio-psychological readiness to perform the role of parents often does not coincide with the biological capacity for this role. Young people see fatherhood as a traditional cultural value, and the birth of children acts as a motivating factor for many to get married. However, young people in their real behavior are oriented towards the values of professional career growth and the achievement of material well-being. That is, it is necessary to motivate young people to get married and have children, thus they will improve the demographic situation in the country. The understanding of responsible parenting refers to parental behavior based on the best interests of the child, namely in relation to upbringing, development of abilities, as well as recognition and orientation, which includes compliance with the framework in which the child can fully develop. The need to strengthen the family is not in doubt today, as serious transformations are taking place in it, which have a number of negative manifestations. Practice of unregistered relationships between young people; an increase in the number of young people who do not plan to have children or postpone their birth; an increase in the number of singleparent families – all this is a consequence of the unconscious and irresponsible attitude of parents to the issue of childbirth. In other words, it is necessary to prepare young people for the responsible performance of the role of father in the family.

Some Considerations on Russian Patronymics

These notes were inspired by a recent article by Boris Norman and Natalja Rajnochová on the role of patronymics in the Russian naming tradition and culture (Voprosy onomastiki, 2020, Vol. 17, Iss. 2). Without disputing its provisions in any way, the author attempts to take a closer look into the present tendency to omit patronymics or even abhor their use. Recognizing this as a growing trend in the Russian culture, the author reflects upon its causes, foremost of which is the general aversion for all the formal manifestations of the Soviet system. Since the use of patronymics (in the official formula) became mandatory exactly after 1917, it is commonly perceived as a Soviet relic. The second reason is the adoption of Western naming practices not requiring the use of a father’s name — due to Russia’s greater involvement in the international communication, extensive overseas travelling, and fluency in foreign languages, primarily English. The issue of the required use of patronymic in official documents is particularly acute when children from mixed families obtain Russian citizenship. Other factors for doing away with patronymics include Russian media language, as in most news programs and talk shows it is carefully avoided, and the increase in the number of single-parent families (no father) where the need to register a patronymic entails complex formal and ethical problems. Yet, however pertinent these problems are in the modern society, the author considers them relatively marginal and argues the relevance of patronymics for modern Russian culture and the naming practice. The author supports this view by giving evidence from Internet forums, as well as the author’s personal experience.

ГРЕЧЕСКАЯ СЕМЬЯ: АКСИОЛОГИЧЕСКИЕ ПРОТИВОРЕЧИЯ

Family issues and the topic of social family policy in Greece is the subject of researches by a number of Greek sociologists (V. Filias (Β. Φίλιας), G.-S. Prevelakis (Γ.-Σ. Πρεβελάκης), H. Simeonidou (Χ. Συμεωνίδου), G. Georgas (Γ. Γεωργάς), L. Musuru (Λ. Μουσούρου), L. Maratu-Aliprandi (Λ. Μαράτου-Αλιπράντη). It seems interesting and useful to consider the situation in Greece from the point of view of its ambivalent nature: traditional values and patriarchal order, on the one hand, and adherence to liberal European sentiments, on the other. In the modern world, there is a "reformatting of ideas about the essence of family and marriage" [Noskova A. V., 2017: 123], which leads, in particular, to the rejection of having children, to increasingly frequent divorces "for no reason", to irresponsibility in awareness roles in the family, to the vulnerability of socialization, to the infantilism of adults, to avoidance of awareness of problems of various kinds, to egocentrism. Modern Greece is not an exception. The growing number of single-parent families in cities, low birth rates, divorces, loneliness, depression are characteristic features of many families. This allows us to speak about the “crisis of the Greek family” [Γεωργάς, 2010]. This research may be of interest to specialists dealing with the topic of the family, and significantly supplement the existing research in the domestic sociological field.

Single Motherhood: Experiences of Never Married Women in Lagos, Nigeria

Despite the benefits of marriage, there has been a rise in the number of single parent families, especially never married single mothers globally. This may bring about serious social problems as the consequences of children raised by single mother have been documented. Yet, little research has been conducted to find out why there is increase in the number of never married single mothers. Therefore, this study investigated and described the experiences of women who were never married but are bearing children and raising those children as single mothers. The study adopted the qualitative research method, utilizing in-depth interviews to collect data from consenting participants. The study location was Iwaya, Lagos, Nigeria, and the participants were selected using snowball sampling technique. Forty never-married single mothers were sampled and interviewed using an in-depth interview guide. The data were transcribed and content analysed. Some of the perceived reasons for the rise in the number of never married single mother identified include family background, sexual abuse, age, careless sexual behaviour and non-use of contraceptives, personal preference and perceived economic benefits. There is the need to educate women on how to prevent sexual abuse and also on proper use of contraceptive for those who may want to engage in sexual intercourse, but may not be ready to get married.

Motivation of Male Students for Preschool Teacher Profession

The number of single parent families is on the rise. There is a lack of father figure both in the family and kindergarten where children are exposed to female influence. Eurostat statistical data (2015) show that female teaching staff is dominant in pre-school education with 95%. The number of female preschool teachers in France is 83%, in Netherlands 86.6%, in the United Kingdom 90%. Male preschool teachers are a rare breed in Croatia too, only 2.3% work in preschool institutions. The aim of the research was to examine motivation of male students for preschool teacher profession. Interviews with all male students enrolled at Undergraduate preschool education in Osijek and Slavonski Brod were conducted. The results showed four clusters of male preschool students’ motivation. Students are intrinsically motivated and see this profession as a calling. This topic sheds new light on family pedagogy and opens up insufficiently explored area of research.

Social Aspects Regarding the Single-Parent Families Vulnerability - The Case Of Arad County

Based on empiric investigations and the study of documents from specialized public institutions, the authors analyse in this article the extent, manifestations, causes and consequences of single-parent families in Arad County. As social entities with a high risk of social exclusion, the authors identify practical measures for intervention by public authorities in the sense of optimizing socialization, social work and balancing these families, especially their children, by taking into account both Romanian and European legislation in this field. Preventing the reproduction/increase in the number of single-parent families must rely on the complete knowledge of this social phenomenon, with the need to establish databases and map the dispersion of single-parent families within administrative-territorial units. The decrease in the number of families with a high social risk over time is the result of correlated and harmonized public policies, aimed at fighting poverty, discrimination, unemployment, lack of access to education, while ensuring the general background for economic development and prosperity. The study is determined by the fact that many times the parents and the children of single parent families find themselves in the situation of not being able to make ends meet, the lack of finances, education and proper housing making it impossible for them to live a decent life. By identifying, through specific scientific methods such as document analysis, interviews, case studies, the particular types of problems facing single parent families, we consider we will succeed in offering a strong basis to motivate decision makers to establish additional social protection measures that will contribute to the reduction of the causes that maintain this social category among vulnerable groups.

Development of Taking in the Good Based-Bibliotherapy Intervention Program in the Female Adolescent Depression Treatment

Adolescent depression is a severe mental health crisis and about 15% of adolescents are subject to a major depressive disorder (Young, Miller & Khan, 2010; Auerbach & Ho, 2012). Depression is related to remarkable hindrances in a person's overall functioning. Moreover, it enhances an increased risk of future serious depressive episodes and other related mental health confusion. The adverse outcomes, associated with adolescent depression (Ferguson & Woodward, 2002), are startling because of a direct pathway linking depression in adolescence to increased risk of later depression and anxiety'. Sex difference in depression is negligible prior to adolescence but there is a dramatic increase of depression in the prevalence, severity', and recurrence between the ages of 12 and 15 among girls (Hilt & Nolen-Hoeksema, 2009). It has been a question of interest among mental health professionals formally decades why girls are more affected than boys. Hyde and Mezulis (2008) proposed the Affect, Biology and Cognition (ABC) Model of Depression to identify depression in adolescent girls from a truly integrated developmental perspective in which affective, biological and cognitive vulnerabilities generate a form of cascade effect leading to adolescent depression and which should be a critical framework. Kerig, Ludlow, andWenar (2012) observed that biology comes back into play when early developing girls experience interpersonal stressors such as peer teasing and sexual harassment, which are the gender-specific forms of life stress that provoke a most recent element in this model. For girls with a basic propensity to depression, these negative experiences can upset the balance and act on their emotional and cognitive vulnerabilities to produce an ideal breeding ground for depression.World Health Organization (WHO) showed that the Philippines has the highest incidence of depression in South East Asia with 93 suicides for every 100,000 Filipinos. Department of Health (DOH) found that 15 out of 900 teenagers tried to commit suicide (DOH, 2015). Among the students surveyed in the Global School-based Health Survey in 2003-2004 (GSHS), 42% had felt sad or hopeless for two weeks or more during the past year; 17.15% had seriously considered committing suicide and 16.7% had actually made a plan about how they would do it. Moreover, females were more than twice as likely as males to have suicidal thoughts. CalmaBalderrama (2004) found that adolescents are at risk of major difficulty in the Philippines where Young people (aged 10-24) will number 32 million by 2025. Hindin and Gultiano (2006) stated that in the Philippines domestic violence is a major stressor causing the onset of depression among adolescents. Chakkyath (2012) emphasized the fact that the modem Filipino family undergoes various changes and transitions including marital separation and that the number of single parent families is increasing rapidly.Weisz, McCarty, and Valeri (2006) consider depression in children and adolescents tobe a significant, persistent, andrecurrent public health problem that undermines social and school functioning, generates severe family stress, and calls for significant assistance from the mental health services. In the psychotherapy treatment for depression, relevant models are found to be effective for adolescents and adults. The Behavioral Activation Model (BAM) is recurrently a top priority in treatment because depression is seen as a loss of response support. Interpersonal Psychotherapy (IP) offers a skill-building approach to specific forms of primary interpersonal issues such as grief, role disputes, role transitions and interpersonal deficits. Self-Management Therapy (SMT) addresses the six deficits in self control behavior of depressed persons or persons prone to depression (Rehm, 2010). According to Power (2013) Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) is a helpful intervention for depression and is the treatment of choice for many groups. …

Malaysia. The New Economic Policy in Malaysia: Affirmative action, ethnic inequalities and social justice Edited by Edmund Terence Gomez and Johan Saravanamuttu Singapore: NUS Press. 2013. Pp. xviii + 393. Map, Notes, Index.

The New Economic Policy in Malaysia: Affirmative action, ethnic inequalities and social justice Edited by EDMUND TERENCE GOMEZ and JOHAN SARAVANAMUTTU Singapore: NUS Press. 2013. Pp. xviii + 393. Map, Notes, Index, doi:10.1017/S0022463414000745 In combining the findings of two research groups at Universiti Malaya and the National University of Singapore, this edited collection represents the most comprehensive assessment to date of the efficacy of Malaysia's New Economic Policy. The grand aim of the NEP after 1971 was to correct ethnic economic imbalances in Malaysia, particularly through propelling Malays and other 'indigenes' into the modern industrial and commercial sphere. This affirmative action programme involved unprecedented state intervention in Malaysian economic life, and it has gained admiring emulation in Fiji, South Africa, Zimbabwe, and India. As the editors point out in their introduction, there is no disputing the reduction in poverty levels and restructuring in corporate equity holdings that the NEP induced. But, there have been downsides, which all the contributors point to. As Ragayan Haji Mat Zin tells us, poverty eradication has not been spatially uniform--Kedah, Kelantan, Perlis, Terengganu, Sabah, and Sarawak continue to experience higher incidences of poverty than the rest of Malaysia, given less access to education, lower levels of foreign investment, and limited industrialisation. Meanwhile, the 'disloyalty' of electorates towards the ruling coalition, in the east-coast peninsular states and the East Malaysian territories, has been punished by the withholding of federal largesse. There also remains an ethnic concentration of poverty amongst Malay/bumiputera and Indian communities. In the countryside, the divide between the 'haves' and the 'have-nots' has been accentuated by development initiatives. This is brought home in Maznah Mohamad's excellent micro-study of villages in northwest Kelantan--over the longer term, the NEP did not succeed here in making the Malay poor any less deprived, highlighted by the phenomena of reverse urban-rural migration after the 1997 crash, the dislocations of youth unemployment and drug abuse, the disadvantages for women and the large number of single-parent families, and the tendency for the Malay village to remain an 'exclusive [ethnic] enclave' (p. 81). The failures of the NEP in small and medium-scale enterprises are brought out by Gomez's own chapter, where he argues that affirmative action in business and an over-concentration on 'race' rather than 'merit' has contributed to Malaysia's economic exposure to the vicissitudes of the global economy and has suppressed genuine entrepreneurship. A similar story emerges in Andrew Aeria's study of Sarawak: the NEP has been used to increase wealth accumulation by a few well-connected elite bumiputera politicians and businessmen, backed by a clique of astonishingly rich ethnic Chinese entrepreneurs. In this rampant rent-seeking and cronyism, the costs of infrastructure projects have been artificially inflated, leaving even less funding for projects directed at sustainable poverty alleviation. Turning to the public sector, Chan Chee Khoon admits that Malaysia's public healthcare system is remarkably comprehensive for a developing-world country. But the recent tendency for the government and parastatals to buy into private providers is leading to a two-tier system, potentially leaving a 'decrepit public sector for the marginalised lower classes' (p. 167). As Lim Hong Hai emphasises, increased Malay domination of the civil service has run completely contrary to the prime 'race-blind' objective of the NEP to eliminate the association of ethnicity with economic function. …

Child Poverty in Hong Kong Single-Parent Families

Over the past few decades, the number of single-parent families in Hong Kong has increased substantially. Single-parent families consistently account for the second-largest number of social security claims, after the elderly. It is well established that children who grow up in single-parent families are more vulnerable to poverty and development problems compared to their counterparts in married households. To assess the child poverty risk for single-parent families and its policy implications, this paper analyzes Census data from the period 1981–2011 to gauge the trend in child poverty and its contributory factors. The results show that the poverty gap between single-parent and married-couple families has widened in the past 30 years. The main reason for this is that the risk factors affecting married-couple families, including parental education and labor market participation, are more effective in reducing their poverty level than the poverty level of single-parent families. Moreover, the changes in social context over the past three decades have also been more favorable to married couples as their family characteristics make them more adaptable to the economic restructuring in Hong Kong. These results suggest that the government’s belief in the trickle-down effect for poverty reduction may not apply to single-parent families, who may find themselves even worse off despite the overall economic growth.

Effectiveness of Teaching in Expressive Arts Therapy-Emotionally Traumatized Preschool Children

In recent years, the numbers of single parent families, skipped-generation education families and high-risk families are increasing year by year, and therefore, the proportion of preschool children from dysfunctional families are also increasing, wherein, these preschool children must face multiple pressures in the external environment, hence, it needs to pay special attention to life adjustment issues of these traumatized preschool children.Kepner (1995) revealed that traumatic preschool childhood experiences coexisted with existing traumatic environments, while observing it from the viewpoint of development; preschool children’s physical, mental and learning capabilities were completely affected. The primary system in the preschool childhood trauma cases was self-enclosed, supportless and helpless; thereby, they might find themself living in constant states of loneliness and hopelessness (Martin, 2009). If preschool childhood trauma was maintained over a considerable period, it could affect the personal development and self-functions as well as social relationships.The cases of preschool children abuse are getting more and more due to the reasons of parental separations, bereavements, skipped-generation educations, witnessing acts of domestic violence; and in general, these preschool children desire to be loved, therefore, these traumatized preschool children will exhibit various degrees of life adjustment problems in different ways, and some of them may eager to show off their abilities, try to please others, and some are very quiet or cringe in front of others, some are very unstable, and some have aggressive tendencies, or have a lower level of learning motivation, or even, some are inveterate liars, etc. (McConnell, 2002).The expressive arts therapy group introduced in this study aimed at older students of kindergartens affiliated to the elementary schools who belonged to emotionally traumatized preschool children with selective mutism and facing life adjustment problems. Thereby, all participants were asked to take part in 50-minute sessions of using expressive art media once a week for 10 weeks (10 unit activities in total). This study mainly aimed to explore the effectiveness of changes in the emotionally traumatized preschool children with selective mutism from high-risk families to participate in the expressive arts therapy group, particularly, the changes in their behaviors and emotions, and life adjustments.This study used the self-created Preschool Children’s Emotional Life Adjustment to assess the performance of emotionally traumatized preschool children with selective mutism and had poor social life adjustments before and after the participation in the expressive arts therapy group; and wherein, class teachers were asked to assist the assessments in order to understand whether these traumatized preschool children had any improvement in life adjustments. In this study, the “Behavioral and Emotional Rating Scale (BERS)” revised by Yang, Zong-Ren (2001) and asked class teachers to assess the improvement of every preschool child’s behavior and emotion, and life adjustment. When these traumatized preschool children were participating in expressive arts therapy group to engage in artistic creations, in which, observing the creative process was a therapeutic tool, and moreover, the creation itself could often disclose new issues, and therefore, enhance preschool children’s responsibility and interests of participation in these group; during the creative process, the preschool children's thinking would become more flexible (Rose, 2007). The changes in the process emphasized in this study meant the changes in behaviors of these traumatized preschool children conducted in the group in the process of engagement in the expressive arts therapy group.

Single-parent family forms and children’s educational performance in a comparative perspective: effects of school’s share of single-parent families

Living in a single-parent family is negatively related with children’s educational performance compared to living with 2 biological parents. In this article, we aim to find out to what extent the context of the school’s share of single-parent families affects this negative relationship. We use pooled data from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), that is, the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) 2000 and 2003, which contain information on 209,300 students at 11,887 schools in 25 countries. We found that attending a school with more children from single-parent families affects the educational performance of all children negatively, but it particularly harms children from single-mother families. Furthermore, we have indications that in countries in which the number of single-parent families is higher, the negative effect of attending a school with a higher share of single-parent families decreases, except for the US.

When Deficits are Misplaced: A Comparison Between African American and White College Students on Qualitative and Structural Dimensions of Interpersonal Relationships

Previous research on interpersonal relationships has indicated extensive differences between African American and White individuals. These differences often have been interpreted as suggesting deficits among African American, as compared to White, relationship patterns. Much of this research has been at a macro-level of analysis, focusing on structural aspects of relationships (e.g., number of single-parent families, number of friends). Although useful, such a focus tends to obscure more qualitative characteristics (e.g., degree of satisfaction, meaning of relationship, attachment), which are better assessed at a micro-level. This study examined the characteristics of family and other relationships among 73 African American and 185 White college students using measures of qualitative characteristics, as well as broader structural categories. Results replicated and further confirmed previous reports comparing African American and White individuals on relationship patterns when viewed from the perspective of broader structural characteristics. In contrast, few differences existed between these two groups in qualitative dimensions of relationships (i.e., their degree of satisfaction with and attachment to various relational partners).

Single‐Parent Family Discourse in Popular Magazines and Social Science Journals

Noting that the rise in the number of single-parent families in the United States is of the most dramatic social changes of the 20th century, Margaret L. Usdansky (2009) asks the question, did attitudes toward single-parent families change as well? More specifically, she wonders whether attitudes toward nonmarital childbearing and divorce (which lead to single parenthood, if only temporarily) are the same as what they were before and whether the attitudes toward each have exhibited similar or different historical patterns. Answering these questions is not as straightforward as it may seem. For besides having to clearly define and measure attitudes, there also is the difficulty of plotting changes from one period of time to the next. The Study's Data and Findings Attitudes generally are defined as mental postures or toward physical or social objects and are believed to involve judgments (positive, negative, or neutral) about such objects. Attitudes also are said to have, at a minimum, cognitive and emotional components (Jaccard & Blanton, 2005, pp. 126 - 127). Researchers often measure attitudes with rating scales, which are inserted into public opinion surveys. The scales have the advantage of explicitly denoting focal objects (What are your attitudes toward a specific A or B?) and typically are sophisticated enough to capture breadth (e.g., thought and emotion) and intensity (e.g., extreme like to extreme dislike). If an investigator is interested in determining whether attitudes have changed over time, he or she is likely to desire data in which the questions that were asked at Time 1 are identical to those asked at Time 2 and Time 3 and Time 4, and so on. Considering all the above, we can readily see the challenges that Usdansky faced when she embarked on her project. Essentially, she encountered the same obstacles that every historically minded scholar encounters. Attitude surveys were not routinely conducted 75 to 100 years ago, which means there is no repository of standardized questionnaires or interviews that Usdansky could have pored over to answer the questions she raises. Whereas nonmarital childbearing and divorce over the course of the 20th century can be plotted with a fair amount of precision, public attitudes toward nonmarital childbearing and divorce cannot be. Unable to rely on surveys, Usdansky chooses, as an alternative, depictions of nonmarital childbearing and divorce in popular magazines and social science journals. Depictions are defined as comments by a given author or commentator within the same article as a unit. Anything an author says about nonmarital childbearing or divorce, or both, also constitutes a depiction, as does anything that a commentator within an article says about nonmarital childbearing, divorce, or both (e.g., if someone cited in an article says something about the phenomena). Usdansky declares from the start, Popular and scholarly depictions cannot tell us what the contents of a detailed series of public opinion surveys would show, were one spanning the 20th century to exist, but they capture the evolution of discourse about single-parent families in two key arenas that both influence and reflect broader public Usdansky, in other words, acknowledges that the popular and scholarly depictions are not analogous to, but are, at best, related to public attitudes. Even with introducing this caveat, Usdansky wants to be able to talk about what is being thought and felt in the community at large. Thus, on one hand, she specifically states that she is studying a small group of elites, whose attitudes are represented in the depictions that happen to be in print, and, on the other hand, she views the depictions as a reflection of the opinions of Americans in general. Usdansky should not be faulted for trying to associate published depictions and public attitudes. Social scientists have long studied media messages in order to get an inkling of the mental dispositions of the people to whom the messages are addressed. …

Family Rituals That Provide Meaning for Single-Parent Families

The number of single-parent families has increased dramatically in the United States. The purpose of this study was to explore the types of family rituals present in single-parent families and their meaning within the family context. Little is known about family rituals in single-parent families, and therefore grounded theory was the qualitative research method used for this study. Unstructured face-to-face interviews were used to obtain data from a theoretical sample of seven single parents. Data analysis appropriate to the grounded theory method was utilized to identify a core variable and an emerging theory. Six types of rituals: connection, spiritual, love, recreation, celebration, and evolving were found to be used by these single-parent families as a way to facilitate family cohesion and instill family values. Applicability of the findings of this study are beneficial for nurses working with clients with diverse, changing, and complex social situations such as the single-parent family.