Parent-Child Relations : History, Theory, Research, and Context

by Heath, Phyllis

• ISBN13: 9780130488428
• ISBN10: 0130488429
• Edition: 2nd
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2009-01-01
• Publisher: Prentice Hall

Summary

Unique in its contextual approach to its subject, this well-researched, applied, brief new book explores "parenting through the lifespan." In-depth coverage of parenting strategies supports all of the bookrs"s content and guidance.It takes a cross-cultural look at five major aspects of parent-child relations-the history, philosophy, and theories of childrearing; variations in childrearing patterns; parent-child relations from a developmental perspective; challenges presented by special needs and situations; and child socialization strategies. Early on, the author examines how cultural beliefs affect parent-child relations and explores the influence of variations in families regarding marital status, sexual orientation, and non-parent adult care giving, and non-parent adult care giving.For professionals who work with children, parents and guardians, and other caregivers.

Table of Contents

Chapter 1 Historical and Theoretical Influences of Childrearing	1	(24)
Autocratic Parenting: A Tradition of Harsh, Strict Childrearing	1	(1)
The Hobbesian View: The Willful Child
Puritan Beliefs: The Sinful Child
The Questioning of Autocratic Parenting	2	(5)
The Legacy of G. Stanley Hall: The Child Study Movement
Sigmund Freud: An Emphasis on Children's Natural Instincts
Watson: The Dangers of Parental Affection
Challenges to Scheduled Care	7	(7)
Attachment Theory: The Importance of Parental Responsiveness
Rene Spitz: The Harmful Effects of Unresponsive Caregiving
The Change in Public Policy from Institutionalization to Foster Care
Erikson: The Resolution of Psychosocial Crises
Benjamin Spock: Limits Within the Context of Warmth and Affection
B.F. Skinner: Reinforcement as a Consequence of Appropriate Behavior
The Social Learning Theorists: Imitation and Modeling
Respecting and Attending to Children's Enthusiasm for Learning	14	(6)
Friedrich Froebel: Play and the Playthings of a Child
Caroline Pratt: Children's Play Is Their Work
Maria Montessori: Children Have Absorbent Minds
Jean Piaget: Children Are Active Participants in Their Own Development
Lev Vygotsky: Guided Participation
The Parent Education Movement Based on Democratic Parent-Child Relationships
The Role of Context in Child Socialization	20	(2)
Ecological Theory: A Model for Examining the Various Contexts of Development
Family Systems Theory: A Look at the Dynamics in the Family System
Summary	22	(3)
Chapter 2 Parenting Patterns in Cultural-Structural Context	25	(32)
Child Socialization Patterns of American Parents	25	(6)
Authoritative Parents
Authoritarian Parents
Permissive Parents
Indulgent Parents
Indifferent Parents
Children of Parents with Inconsistent Parenting Styles
Cultural Variations in Parenting Patterns	31	(6)
Child Socialization in Non-Western Societies
Parent-Child Relations in U.S. Ethnic Minority Families
Traditional Cultures and Extended Family Relations
The Influence of Socioeconomic Status on Parenting Patterns	37	(1)
The Influence of Religiosity on Parenting Patterns	38	(1)
The Influence of Family Structure on Child Socialization Patterns	38	(15)
Families Affected by Parental Divorce
Parents Who Are Widowed
Adolescent Single Parents
Single Parents Who Are Not Divorced, Widowed, or Adolescents
Gay and Lesbian Parents
Surrogate Parents
The Influence of Families of Origin in Childrearing Patterns	53	(1)
Summary	53	(4)
Chapter 3 Becoming Parents and Parenting Infants and Toddlers	57	(34)
Optimizing the Chances of Having Healthy Babies	57	(4)
Maintaining a Nutritious Diet
Avoiding Harmful Substances
Getting Early Prenatal Care
Poverty as a Risk Factor for Low-Birth-Weight Infants
Birth and Newborns	61	(3)
When Infants Are Born Early and/or Small
The Transition to Parenthood: A Major Developmental Milestone	64	(2)
Support for New Parents
The Role of Parents in Infant/Toddler Social-Emotional, Physical, and Cognitive Development	66	(4)
The Promotion of Social-Emotional Development
Toddler Autonomy and Exploratory Behavior	70	(1)
Autonomy and Independent Toileting
The Promotion of Physical Development	71	(2)
Meeting the Nutritional Needs of Infants and Toddlers
Health Care for Infants and Toddlers	73	(2)
Assisting Infant/Toddlers in the Development of Self-Regulation	75	(3)
Self-Regulation and Infant/Toddler Sleep Patterns
The Promotion of Infants' and Toddlers' Motor Skills
The Promotion of Cognitive Development	78	(2)
"Alien Geniuses": The Brain Development of the Infant-Toddler	80	(1)
The Perceptual Preferences of Infants	81	(2)
The Importance of Infant Perceptual Preferences
Parent-Infant/Toddler Verbal Interactions	83	(1)
The Role of Parent-Infant Play	84	(1)
The Care of Infants and Toddlers When Parents Work	85	(3)
Tag-Team Parenting: When Both Parents Work and Care for Their Children
Grandparent Care
Center-Based Child Care
Summary	88	(3)
Chapter 4 Parent-Preschooler Interactions	91	(26)
The Parental Role in Promoting Preschoolers' Social-Emotional Development	91	(6)
Early Attachment and Parent-Preschooler Relationships
Promoting the Young Child's Sense of Initiative
Parental Contributions to Preschoolers' Self-Esteem
Promoting Preschoolers' Self-Reliance
Helping Young Children Discover Their Personal Boundaries
The Role of Parents in Promoting Preschoolers' Physical Development	97	(2)
Meeting the Nutritional Needs of Preschoolers
The Brain Development of Young Children	99	(1)
Promotion of Preschoolers' Fine and Gross Motor Skills	100	(4)
The Development of Gross Motor Skills
The Development of Fine Motor Skills
The Development of Personal and Family Life Skills
The Household Responsibilities of Children in Traditional Cultures
The Role of Parents in Promoting Young Children's Cognitive Development	104	(6)
Insights from Piaget
Insights from Vygotsky
The Role of Parents in Promoting Language Development
How Young Children Understand Speech
Challenges and Concerns of Parents of Young Children	110	(5)
Sleeping Problems
Sleep Disturbance Related to Bed-Wetting
Sleep Problems Not Associated with Other Childhood Problems
Sibling Conflict
Summary	115	(2)
Chapter 5 Interactions Between Parents and Their School-Age Children	117	(28)
The Role of Parents in Promoting School-Age Children's Social-Emotional Development	117	(3)
The Ways in Which Parents Influence School-Age Children's Sense of Industry
The Parental Role in School-Age Children's Development of Coregulation
The Role of Parents in Promoting School-Age Children's Competence
The Role of Parents in the Development of School-Age Children's Social Relationships	120	(5)
The Ways in Which Childrearing Patterns Influence Children's Social Relationships
The Influence of the Neighborhood on the Social Relationships of School-Age Children
Providing Opportunities for Children's Peer Group Interactions
Factors Related to Children's Ability to Cope with Social Problems	125	(1)
Children's Problem-Solving Abilities
Promotion of School-Age Children's Physical Development	126	(4)
The Importance of Meeting School-Age Children's Nutritional Needs
The Growing Problem of Childhood Obesity in the United States
Promoting the Motor Skills of School-Age Children	130	(3)
Fine Motor Skill Development
Gross Motor Skill Development
Keeping School-Age Children Safe	133	(2)
The Steps Involved in the WHO Safe Community Model
Promoting the Cognitive Development of School-Age Children	135	(6)
Development of School-Age Children's Ability to Use Logical Reasoning: A Piagetian Perspective
The Views of Vygotsky Regarding the Parental Influence of School-Age Children's Cognitive Development
Cognitive Limitations of School-Age Children
The Ways in Which Parents Promote the Language Development of Their School-Age Children
School-Age Children's Development of the Ability to Use Code-Switching
Promoting Children's School Achievement	141	(1)
Summary	142	(3)
Chapter 6 Parent-Adolescent Interactions	145	(28)
Parental Styles and Adolescent Development	145	(1)
The Ways in Which Parenting Patterns Impact Adolescents' Lives	146	(4)
Adolescent Children of Authoritative, Permissive, Authoritarian, or Indulgent Parents
When Parents Are Indifferent
The Traditional Parenting Style
The Issue of Parental Inconsistency
Bidirectional Effects of Parents and Children
Developmental Changes and the Parent-Adolescent Relationship	150	(7)
Adolescents' Attachment to Their Parents
The Link Between Parent-Adolescent Relationships and Adolescents' Conceptions of Self
The Adolescent Quest for Identity
Parent-Adolescent Conflict	157	(3)
Sources of Parent-Adolescent Conflict
Conflict and Closeness in Parent-Child Relations
Conflict Arising from Indirect Communication
The Role of Culture in Parent-Adolescent Conflict
Changes in the Family System When Children Reach Adolescence	160	(3)
The Changes in the Family System to Accommodate Changes in the Adolescent
The Dual Transitions of Adolescent Children and Midlife Parents
The Launching of Young Adults
Problems That Adolescents Sometimes Face	163	(7)
Adolescent Depression
Adolescent Eating Disorders
Adolescent Substance Abuse
Adolescent Crime and Delinquency
Adolescents Who Run Away from Home
The Influence of Parents and Peers on Adolescent Risk Behavior
Summary	170	(3)
Chapter 7 The Relationships of Young Adults, Their Parents, and Their Children	173	(26)
Variations in the Economic Interdependence of Young Adults and Their Parents	173	(1)
Variations in the Living Arrangements of Young Adults and Their Parents	174	(2)
Adult Children Living with Their Parents in Industrialized Societies
Parenthood and the Social-Emotional Development of Young Adults	176	(6)
The Attachment of Young Adults to Their Parents
The Role of Parents in Promoting Young Adults' Achievement of Intimacy
Parent-Child Relationships and the Achievement of a Sense of Generativity
The Influence of Parent-Child Relationships on Young Adults' Cognitive Development	182	(6)
Parenthood and Postformal Thinking
Parenthood and Vygotsky's Concept of Scaffolding
The Assumption of Adult Social Roles	188	(4)
The Selection of Adult Gender Roles
The Parallel Development of the Social Roles of Young Adults and Their Parents
Young Adulthood and Parent-Child Relationships: A Family Systems Perspective	192	(4)
When Young Adults Establish Separate Residences
The Changes That Occur in Parent-Child Relationships When Members Are Added to the Family System
Combining Work and Parental Roles	196	(1)
Summary	196	(3)
Chapter 8 Middle Age and Older Parenthood and Grandparenthood	199	(26)
The Influence of Parenthood on the Social-Emotional Development of Middle-Aged Adults	199	(4)
The Impact of Adult Children's Social Status Transitions
The Impact of Middle-Aged Parents' Social Status Transitions
The Relationships of Older Parents and Their Middle-Aged Children	203	(1)
Parent-Child Relationships and Social-Emotional Development of Older Persons	203	(3)
The Transitions of Elderly Parents and Their Middle-Aged Children
Grandparenthood, Personhood, and the Life Course	206	(3)
The Greater Number and Various Roles of Grandparents Today
The Cultural Role of Grandparent
Older Adult Caregivers of Grandchildren and/or Elderly Parents	209	(6)
Custodial Grandparents
The Challenges Associated with Providing Care for Elderly Parents
The Able Elderly in the Family Context	215	(7)
Measures of Relationship Quality
Factors Influencing Relationship Quality
Time Usage and the Quality of Intergenerational Relationships
Summary	222	(3)
Chapter 9 Children at Risk: Special Challenges in Parent-Child Relationships	225	(30)
Parenting Children Who Have Exceptionalities	225	(1)
The Importance of Child-First Language
Parenting the Child with a Physical or Mental Impairment	226	(8)
Parenting Children with Mental Impairments
Parenting the Autistic Child
Parenting Children with Learning Disabilities
Parenting Children with Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder
Parenting the Physically Impaired Child
Parenting Children with Chronic Illness	234	(2)
Helping Children Who Are Chronically Ill Cope with Hospitalization
The Effects of a Child's Chronic Illness on Family Relationships
Parenting Children Who Have Sensory Impairments	236	(4)
Parents' Concerns for Their Children Who Are Visually Impaired
Parenting Children Who Have Auditory Impairments
Parents and Their Gifted Children	240	(2)
Gifted Families
The Challenges of Parenting the Child Who Is Gifted
Family Environments That Place Children at Development Risk	242	(1)
Child Maltreatment	242	(4)
The History of Child Maltreatment in the United States
The Impact of Maltreatment on Children's Lives
Interventions to Prevent or Interrupt the Cycle of Child Maltreatment
Children of Parents Who Are Alcoholics	246	(3)
The Ways in Which Problem Drinking Affects Parenting Skills
Parental Alcoholism and the Abuse and Neglect of Children
Relationships and Roles in Families of Alcoholic Parents
Summary	249	(6)
Chapter 10 Loss and Grief in Parent-Child Relationships	255	(26)
The Impact of a Family Member's Death on Children	255	(9)
Children's Understanding of Death
The Grief of Children When a Family Member Dies
The Death of a Sibling
Help for Grieving Children
The Disenfranchised Loss and Grief of Children	264	(6)
The Loss and Grief of Parental Divorce Versus Parental Death
Helping Children Cope with Parental Divorce
The Loss and Grief of Children in Foster Care and Adoptive Families
The Grief of Adults Who Lose Parents or Children	270	(2)
The Emotional Stages of Grief
The Impact of a Family Member's Death on Adults
The Death of an Older Parent	272	(1)
The Death of a Child	273	(3)
The Loss and Grief Experiences of Foster Parents	276	(1)
Help for Grieving Foster Parents
The Loss and Grief of Parents and Children When Parents Are Incarcerated	277	(2)
Responding to the Needs of Children of Incarcerated Parents
Incarcerated Mothers
Summary	279	(2)
Chapter 11 Child Socialization Strategies and Techniques	281	(35)
Guidance as Prevention of Problems	281	(14)
Establishing an Atmosphere of Psychological Safety
Guidance as Encouragement of Children
Four Pluses and a Wish-A Strategy for Motivating Children's Compliance
The Concept of Belongingness and Children's Goals of Misbehavior
Effective Parent-Child Communication as a Parenting Strategy	295	(5)
Problem Ownership
Active Listening
I-Messages
Guidance as Reinforcement and Modeling	300	(5)
Reinforcement of Approved Behavior
Imitation and Modeling
Guidance as Limits, Consequences, and Conflict Resolution	305	(7)
The Technique of Induction
Natural and Logical Consequences
Glasser's Reality Therapy
Resolving Parent-Child Conflict	312	(2)
The Advantages of Using the No-Lose Method of Conflict Resolution
Summary	314	(2)
References	316	(31)
Author Index	347	(8)
Subject Index	355

Excerpts

This book was written to acquaint undergraduate students with the study of parent-child relations in the following major areas: The history of childrearing in the United States as well as philosophical and theoretical perspectives that have guided child socialization practices in this country. Variations in childrearing patterns, including the childrearing practices of ethnic majority and ethnic minority parents in the United States as well as childrearing practices in other countries. Coverage of parent-child relations at each of the following developmental stages: infancy and toddler-hood, preschool and middle childhood, early to late adolescence, and early to late adulthood. Challenges faced by parents and children when the special needs of the child, the family dynamics, or the experience of grief and loss place children at developmental risk. Child socialization strategies for guiding children to become increasingly more competent and to have higher self-esteem as well as parenting skills for preventing and responding to problem behaviors. Contextual Approach to Parenting The contextual approach to parenting, which is a distinctive feature of the book, is emphasized by the inclusion of both historical and cultural approaches to understanding parent-child relations. Historically, we will examine how those relationships have changed during the past century as well as ways in which more recent changes in the family (such as the rising rates of grandparent primary caregivers) have altered caregiver-child relationships. We will also explore parent-child relationships in various ethnic groups within the United States and compare those to the lives of parents and children in selected cultures throughout the world. Theory and research in human development and family relations have been interwoven with presentations of historical, cultural, and structural variations in the family; this focus is the basis for most of the chapters in the text. A discussion drawing attention to how cultural beliefs affect parent-child relations is presented early in the text. Because the cultural approach is a central theme of this book, it is essential to understand that there are important differences and similarities in parent-child relationships across cultures. A discussion of the variations in families due to marital status, sexual orientation, and the care of children by adults other than parents is presented early in the text as well. The purpose of addressing the similarities and differences in various family arrangements is to heighten understanding of the commitment to the care of children that exists in families regardless of the conditions that have brought them together. The early presentations of cultural and structural variations in families are not meant to stand alone but rather to set the stage for discussions throughout the text that will focus on parents and children in the various settings in which their development occurs. That approach allows students to see how culture and family variations, as well as age and gender, are related to parent-child interactions at each stage of life. Parenting Strategies Another distinctive feature of this textbook is the in-depth coverage of parenting strategies. An overview of contemporary parenting strategies is presented in the final chapter, chapter 11, which includes a variety of techniques. Abundant figures in that chapter help explain each technique, and sufficient examples are provided to enhance students' understanding of how to use each of them. Furthermore, the strategies contained in the final chapter support information covered in previous chapters and provide guidance for parents as well as for professionals working with children and their parents or other caregivers. This approach to the presentation of child socialization strategies allows students to integrate theory, research, and technique.