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Child Well-Being in Single-Parent Families

A mother and her child are standing outdoors, each with one arm wrapped around the other. They are looking at each other and smiling. The child has a basketball in hand.

This post high­lights the lat­est sta­tis­tics and demo­graph­ic trends involv­ing sin­gle-par­ent fam­i­lies. It iden­ti­fies some com­mon hur­dles fac­ing these fam­i­lies and shares oppor­tu­ni­ties for sup­port­ing both sin­gle par­ents and their children.

Defin­ing Chil­dren in Sin­gle-Par­ent Families

The Annie E. Casey Foundation’s KIDS COUNT ® Data Cen­ter uses U.S. Cen­sus Bureau data to define chil­dren in sin­gle-par­ent fam­i­lies. This demo­graph­ic group describes any child under age 18 who lives with an unmar­ried par­ent. Chil­dren liv­ing with cohab­it­ing cou­ples are includ­ed in this group, but chil­dren liv­ing with a mar­ried par­ent and step­par­ent are not.

Sta­tis­tics About Chil­dren in Sin­gle-Par­ent Families

In the Unit­ed States today, near­ly 24 mil­lion chil­dren live in a sin­gle-par­ent fam­i­ly. This total, which has been ris­ing for half a cen­tu­ry, cov­ers about one in every three kids across Amer­i­ca. A num­ber of long-term demo­graph­ic trends have fueled this increase, includ­ing: mar­ry­ing lat­er, declin­ing mar­riage rates, increas­ing divorce rates and an uptick in babies born to sin­gle mothers.

With­in sin­gle-par­ent fam­i­lies, most chil­dren — 14 . 5 mil­lion — live in moth­er-only house­holds. More than 6  mil­lion kids live with cohab­i­tat­ing par­ents and 3 . 5  mil­lion kids live in father-only house­holds, accord­ing to 2021 esti­mates. *

Among unmar­ried par­ents, the share of sin­gle moth­ers has shrunk in recent decades while the share of cohab­it­ing par­ents has grown .

Sta­tis­tics by Race, Eth­nic­i­ty and Fam­i­ly Nativity

The like­li­hood of a child liv­ing in a sin­gle-par­ent fam­i­ly varies by race, eth­nic­i­ty and fam­i­ly nativ­i­ty. Data from 2021 indi­cates that:

  • Black and Amer­i­can Indi­an or Alas­ka Native kids are most like­ly to live in a sin­gle-par­ent fam­i­lies ( 64 % of Black chil­dren and 49 % of Amer­i­can Indi­an or Alas­ka Native chil­dren fit this demographic).
  • White and Asian and Pacif­ic Islander kids are least like­ly to live in a sin­gle-par­ent house­hold ( 24 % of white chil­dren and 16 % of Asian and Pacif­ic Islander chil­dren fit this demographic). 
  • Lati­no chil­dren and mul­tira­cial kids fall some­where in the mid­dle — with 42 % and 38 % of kids from these groups, respec­tive­ly, liv­ing in a sin­gle-par­ent family.
  • Fam­i­ly nativ­i­ty makes a dif­fer­ence : 37 % of kids in U.S.-born fam­i­lies live in a sin­gle-par­ent house­hold com­pared to just 24 % of kids in immi­grant families.

Sin­gle-Par­ent Fam­i­ly Dif­fer­ences by State, City and Con­gres­sion­al District

The like­li­hood that a child lives in a sin­gle-par­ent fam­i­ly varies by location.

At the state lev­el , this sta­tis­tic varies — from a low of 18 % of kids in Utah to a high of 45 % of kids in Louisiana and Mis­sis­sip­pi liv­ing in a sin­gle-par­ent household.

Children in Single-Parent Families 2021

Among the 50 most pop­u­lous U.S. cities with data in 2021 : The share of chil­dren in sin­gle-par­ent fam­i­lies ranged from a low of 21 % in Seat­tle to a high of 71 % in Detroit . The KIDS COUNT Data Cen­ter also breaks this sta­tis­tic down by Con­gres­sion­al Dis­trict, which indi­cates even greater vari­a­tion local­ly — from a low of 13 % to a high of 69 % in New York’s Dis­trict 15 .

Sta­tis­tics on Sin­gle-Par­ent Homes and Poverty

Fam­i­ly struc­ture and socioe­co­nom­ic sta­tus are linked, accord­ing to decades of research. Increas­ing­ly, mar­riage reflects a class divide , as indi­vid­u­als with high­er incomes and edu­ca­tion lev­els are much more like­ly to mar­ry. In 2021 ,  near­ly 30 % of sin­gle par­ents lived in pover­ty while just 6 % of mar­ried cou­ples fit this same sta­tis­tic. Sin­gle par­ents are also more like­ly to live in pover­ty when com­pared to cohab­it­ing cou­ples, and sin­gle moth­ers are much more like­ly to be poor com­pared to sin­gle fathers.

Com­mon Chal­lenges of Sin­gle-Par­ent Families

A num­ber of fac­tors have fueled the rise in sin­gle-par­ent fam­i­lies. For instance: More peo­ple are opt­ing to mar­ry lat­er in life, skip mar­riage alto­geth­er and have kids out­side of mar­riage. At the same time, mar­riages have grown more like­ly to end in divorce.

More than 20 % of chil­dren born to mar­ried cou­ples will expe­ri­ence a divorce by age 9  and more than 50 % of kids born to cohab­it­ing cou­ples will expe­ri­ence a parental breakup, accord­ing to some estimates.

Tran­si­tion­ing to a sin­gle-par­ent house­hold can dis­rupt a child’s rou­tines, edu­ca­tion, hous­ing arrange­ment and fam­i­ly income. It can also inten­si­fy the inci­dence of parental con­flict and stress. These changes can be very dif­fi­cult — and even trau­mat­ic — for some children.

Com­pared to kids in mar­ried-par­ent house­holds, chil­dren in sin­gle-par­ent fam­i­lies are more like­ly to expe­ri­ence poor out­comes. While the research is com­plex, some­times con­tra­dic­to­ry and evolv­ing, mount­ing evi­dence indi­cates that under­ly­ing fac­tors — such as strong and sta­ble rela­tion­ships, parental men­tal health, socioe­co­nom­ic sta­tus and access to resources — have a greater impact on child suc­cess than does fam­i­ly struc­ture alone.

Chil­dren thrive when they have safe, sta­ble and nur­tur­ing envi­ron­ments and rela­tion­ships, and these con­di­tions and con­nec­tions can exist in any type of family.

Socioe­co­nom­ic Dis­ad­van­tage and Its Impact on Children

Sin­gle-par­ent fam­i­lies — and espe­cial­ly moth­er-only house­holds — are more like­ly to live in pover­ty com­pared to mar­ried-par­ent house­holds. Giv­en this, kids of sin­gle par­ents are more like­ly to expe­ri­ence the con­se­quences of grow­ing up poor . Chil­dren in pover­ty are more like­ly to have phys­i­cal, men­tal and behav­ioral health prob­lems, dis­rupt­ed brain devel­op­ment, short­er edu­ca­tion­al tra­jec­to­ries, con­tact with the child wel­fare and jus­tice sys­tems, employ­ment chal­lenges in adult­hood and more.

Many fam­i­lies are low-income but sit above the fed­er­al­ly-defined pover­ty line. Chil­dren from these fam­i­lies are also more like­ly to have poor life out­comes com­pared to those in high­er-income fam­i­lies. Addi­tion­al­ly, low-income kids (below or above the pover­ty line) often live in less safe com­mu­ni­ties with lim­it­ed access to qual­i­ty health care, com­pre­hen­sive sup­port ser­vices and enrich­ing activities.

Researchers have also linked pover­ty to parental stress. Sin­gle par­ents may strug­gle to cov­er their family’s basic needs, includ­ing food, util­i­ties, hous­ing, child care, cloth­ing and trans­porta­tion. Nav­i­gat­ing these strug­gles alone — and with lim­it­ed resources — can send stress lev­els soar­ing. High parental stress, in turn, can spark even more chal­lenges and adverse out­comes among the chil­dren involved.

Also worth not­ing: Pover­ty lev­els for Black, Amer­i­can Indi­an or Alas­ka Native and Lati­no chil­dren are con­sis­tent­ly above the nation­al aver­age , and these gen­er­a­tions-long inequities per­sist regard­less of fam­i­ly structure.

Poten­tial Emo­tion­al and Behav­ioral Impact on Children

While most chil­dren in sin­gle-par­ent house­holds grow up to be well-adjust­ed adults, kids from sin­gle-par­ent fam­i­lies are more like­ly to face emo­tion­al and behav­ioral health chal­lenges — like aggres­sion or engag­ing in high-risk behav­iors — when com­pared to peers raised by mar­ried par­ents. Research has linked these chal­lenges with fac­tors often asso­ci­at­ed with sin­gle-par­ent fam­i­lies, such as parental stress, parental breakups, wit­ness­ing con­flict, lost social net­works, mov­ing homes and socioe­co­nom­ic hurdles.

Chil­dren of sin­gle moth­ers may face addi­tion­al chal­lenges. For instance: Depres­sion, which can neg­a­tive­ly impact par­ent­ing, is com­mon among recent­ly divorced moth­ers. Solo moms often lack ade­quate social sup­port, as well. 

Such hard­ships would be dif­fi­cult for any child. But kids can recov­er and thrive — par­tic­u­lar­ly when raised with the ben­e­fits of nur­tur­ing rela­tion­ships, sta­bil­i­ty, and men­tal health support.

Poten­tial Impact on Child Development

Experts are increas­ing­ly view­ing child devel­op­ment dis­rup­tions through the lens of adverse child­hood expe­ri­ences (ACEs). These poten­tial­ly trau­mat­ic events can take many forms, such as divorce or parental sep­a­ra­tion, pover­ty, men­tal health chal­lenges, sub­stance abuse at home, expo­sure to vio­lence, and so forth. ACEs can cause ​ “ tox­ic stress,” which can lead to last­ing, dele­te­ri­ous dis­rup­tions in a child’s phys­i­cal and men­tal health, edu­ca­tion and oth­er life outcomes.

The risk of ACE expo­sure varies by a child’s race and eth­nic­i­ty, with Amer­i­can Indi­an or Alas­ka Native and Black chil­dren more like­ly to expe­ri­ence mul­ti­ple ACEs than peers from oth­er racial and eth­nic cat­e­gories. Gen­er­al­ly speak­ing, how­ev­er: The more ACEs a child expe­ri­ences, the greater the risk of harm­ful effects, regard­less of fam­i­ly structure.

Poten­tial Influ­ence on Education

Aca­d­e­m­i­cal­ly speak­ing, chil­dren in sin­gle-par­ent fam­i­lies are more like­ly to drop out of high school when com­pared to peers with mar­ried par­ents. This height­ened risk is like­ly is due to fac­tors asso­ci­at­ed with many sin­gle-par­ent house­holds; research indi­cates that chil­dren with few­er eco­nom­ic resources, more fam­i­ly insta­bil­i­ty, and more ACEs are at increased risk of poor edu­ca­tion­al out­comes — includ­ing drop­ping out of school.

Changes in Time Spent with Parents

While every fam­i­ly sit­u­a­tion is unique, chil­dren in sin­gle-par­ent house­holds are like­ly to have less time with their par­ent when com­pared to peers in cohab­it­ing- or mar­ried-cou­ple house­holds. This is par­tic­u­lar­ly true if that par­ent works more than one job or long hours to make ends meet.

After a divorce or parental breakup, chil­dren often have less time with their non­res­i­dent par­ent, which is typ­i­cal­ly the father . Main­tain­ing an involved, nur­tur­ing rela­tion­ship with the non­cus­to­di­al par­ent is high­ly impor­tant for a child’s well-being.

A Bet­ter Infra­struc­ture and Stronger Safe­ty Net for Families

Many pro­gram and pol­i­cy strate­gies exist to sup­port chil­dren in sin­gle-par­ent fam­i­lies and to reduce inequities due to race, eth­nic­i­ty and socioe­co­nom­ic sta­tus. For exam­ple, out­comes for these chil­dren can be improved by:

  • Strength­en­ing finan­cial safe­ty net pro­grams and improv­ing afford­able hous­ing , which can reduce insta­bil­i­ty and parental stress.
  • Pro­vid­ing afford­able, acces­si­ble high-qual­i­ty ear­ly child­hood edu­ca­tion, which has crit­i­cal ben­e­fits for child devel­op­ment and sup­ports parental employ­ment and fam­i­ly stability.
  • Max­i­miz­ing two-gen­er­a­tion com­mu­ni­ty devel­op­ment strate­gies that improve the qual­i­ty of schools for kids and build job and par­ent­ing skills for the adults in their lives.
  • Offer­ing trau­ma-informed and cul­tur­al­ly appro­pri­ate ser­vices — such as home-vis­it­ing ser­vices, par­ent edu­ca­tion, men­tal health care and sub­stance use treat­ment — that address parental stress and sup­port fam­i­ly relationships.
  • Sup­port­ing the needs of young par­ents and also young fathers , espe­cial­ly those of color.

Strengths of Sin­gle-Par­ent Families

Many sin­gle par­ents pro­vide sta­ble, lov­ing envi­ron­ments and rela­tion­ships for their chil­dren. Exam­ples of how sin­gle-par­ent fam­i­lies can ben­e­fit chil­dren include:

  • Solo par­ents may have more time to focus on their kids if they no longer need to spend time focus­ing on the needs of their spouse or partner.
  • Years of fight­ing may pre­cede a divorce or sep­a­ra­tion. End­ing this con­flict and pro­vid­ing calm envi­ron­ments can reduce stress for both the chil­dren and parents.

Chang­ing the Con­ver­sa­tion About Chil­dren in Sin­gle-Par­ent Families

Chil­dren can thrive in any fam­i­ly struc­ture, and fam­i­ly struc­tures can change over time. Fam­i­ly types have also become more diverse, with blend­ed step-fam­i­lies, same-sex par­ent fam­i­lies, chil­dren liv­ing with rel­a­tives and more.

In addi­tion, sin­gle par­ents who choose to have kids through donors or sur­ro­ga­cy may not have the same socioe­co­nom­ic dis­ad­van­tages and parental stress asso­ci­at­ed with oth­er sin­gle par­ents. As we think about fam­i­ly struc­ture and sin­gle-par­ent fam­i­lies, it may be help­ful to keep in mind these nuanced and evolv­ing issues.

For many years, the con­ver­sa­tion among researchers, advo­cates, pol­i­cy­mak­ers and oth­ers regard­ing sin­gle-par­ent fam­i­lies has focused on how this fam­i­ly type might neg­a­tive­ly affect chil­dren. What if, instead, we focus on what chil­dren need to thrive?

We know that all young peo­ple — includ­ing kids in sin­gle-par­ent fam­i­lies — flour­ish when they have car­ing, com­mit­ted rela­tion­ships with par­ents or oth­er lov­ing care­givers. We also know the impor­tance of safe, sta­ble homes, com­mu­ni­ties and fam­i­lies that have ade­quate socioe­co­nom­ic resources, social sup­ports and ser­vices. Focus­ing on qual­i­ty-of-life expe­ri­ences and ensur­ing equi­table access to oppor­tu­ni­ties can help young peo­ple reach their full poten­tial .

Learn More About Vul­ner­a­ble Fam­i­lies and Stay Connected

For decades, the Annie E. Casey Foun­da­tion has pro­mot­ed the well-being of vul­ner­a­ble chil­dren and youth, includ­ing those in sin­gle-par­ent fam­i­lies. The Foun­da­tion has tracked data , pub­lished resources, sup­port­ed pro­grams and advo­cat­ed for poli­cies to improve the lives of these chil­dren, youth and fam­i­lies. Explore the Foundation’s many pub­li­ca­tions, tools and best prac­tices, blog posts and oth­er resources , such as:

  • Report: Fam­i­ly-Cen­tered Com­mu­ni­ty Change
  • Report: Open­ing Doors for Young Par­ents
  • Blog Post: Thrive by 25 Announce­ment
  • Strate­gies: Eco­nom­ic Opportunity
  • Resources: Father­hood
  • Resources: Child Pover­ty
  • Resources: Earned Income Tax Credit 
  • Resources: Racial Equi­ty and Inclu­sion
  • Resource: KIDS COUNT Data Book

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single parent family case study

Single Mother Role in the Success of their Children ( Phenomenological Study of Single Women in Makassar City )

Proceedings of MICoMS 2017

eISBN : 978-1-78756-793-1

ISSN : 2516-2853

Publication date: 4 May 2018

Purpose – The study is aimed to identify the openness, empathy, supportiveness, positiveness, and equality between mother and child as the key factors for successful children. If the parents are not able to give attention and love to their children, it will form feelings of insecurity and hatred towards themselves and to their surroundings. Similarly, if the parents are not able to create discipline in education, the probability of unclear future for their child will increase. A single mother has to endure a lot of problems and face the biggest challenge in their life; to be a single parent who must be able to hold multiple roles, that is as a father who works for a family living and as a mother who nurtures and educate her children. As a mother, she is required to be able to manage everything by herself; some of them include financial management, jobs, and nurture time for her children.

Methodology – employed in this study was in-depth interview to observe inhibiting factors that experienced by single parents in parenting pattern that they apply in nurturing their children.

Finding – Result showed that frequency and intensity play important role in creating openness, empathy, supportive attitude, positive attitude, and equality as well as automatically able to form inclusion, control, and affection between mother and children. The expected final result is the discovery of an ideal way of single parent role for their children.

Implications – the research results showed that frequent communication behavior and sufficient intensity are used to give children more confident in their activities at home or school environment and by which, the children will be able to reach success in their life.

Value originality – the research is the existence of communication pattern formed by single mother family and her children.

  • A single mother
  • Success children
  • Family communication

Indrayanti, , Suminar, J.R. , Siswadi, A.G.P. and Setianti, Y. (2018), "Single Mother Role in the Success of their Children ( Phenomenological Study of Single Women in Makassar City )", Proceedings of MICoMS 2017 ( Emerald Reach Proceedings Series, Vol. 1 ), Emerald Publishing Limited, Leeds, pp. 229-234. https://doi.org/10.1108/978-1-78756-793-1-00077

Emerald Publishing Limited

Copyright © 2018, Indrayanti, Jenny Ratna Suminar, Ahmad Gimmy Pratama Siswadi, Yanti Setianti.

Published in the Emerald Reach Proceedings Series. Published by Emerald Publishing Limited. This article is published under the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY 4.0) licence. Anyone may reproduce, distribute, translate and create derivative works of this article (for both commercial and non-commercial purposes), subject to full attribution to the original publication and authors. The full terms of this licence may be seen at The full terms of this licence may be seen at http://creativecommons.org/licences/by/4.0/legalcode

1. Introduction

Although the family is the basic unit of society, it occupies the primary and fundamental level. Thus, family plays an important role in the formation of a child personality or, in other words, it produces significant influences in the child life. If the parents are not able to give attention and love to their children, it will form feelings of insecurity and hatred towards themselves and to their surroundings. Similarly, if the parents are not able to create discipline in education, the probability of unclear future for their child will increase.

The roles and duties of parents regarding their children must not be separated from the way they communicate with each other. Further, we need to realize the fact that no human beings in this world are born with skills of communication. Some frequent errors may include interrupting each other, arguments, blaming, attacking other’s personalities, creating feelings of guilt on another person, rush, expressed unclear and unrealistic desires. In addition, it often leads to conflicts between family members.

Makassar is a metropolitan city with a large population. Based on data obtained from the Religious Courts Class 1-A of Makassar City, divorce cases filed from 2010 to 2014 were 8,911 cases; 6,148 cases were lawsuits filed by the wife to their husband.

When a single parent is a matter of choice, it is usually well prepared and, thus, will not become a heavy burden. Good preparation is often allocated to mental and economic aspects. Solutions provided may include a meeting of household needs, methods to overcome loneliness and even the requirements to be a mother and, also, a father to the children. Yet, a contrary condition will be the case when a single parent is a necessity situation.

The single mother has to endure a lot of problems and face the biggest challenge in their life; to be a single parent who must be able to hold multiple roles, that is as a father who works for a family living and as a mother who nurtures and educate the children. As a single parent, she is required to be able to manage everything by herself. Some of them include financial management, jobs, and nurture time for her children.

2. Objective

The study aims to analyze the openness, empathy, supportive attitude, positive attitude, and equality between mother and child.

A qualitative method with phenomenological approach will be employed in the research. Qualitative method is a process of research and understanding that based on a methodology that investigates the social phenomenon and human problems. In this method, the researchers create complex descriptions, investigate words, construct detail reports of the views of respondents, and conduct studies on the natural situations (Creswell, 1998).

Location for a phenomenology research can be centered in one place, or disperse places, with consideration to individuals that will be used as the informants; either one or more individuals who are considered eligible to provide good information. Research is planned to take place in Makassar city and focusing on single parents and employing five individuals as the informants. The informants are single mothers with children, have been living their life as single mothers since their children were little or at school age, and have not engaged in marriage status. Research will be carried out in, at least, six months.

The study discusses single mother family communication and, thus, it requires the subjects of research (informants) to be those that are able to provide reliable or related information to its research. Informants that selected as the data source is a mother in a single parent family who lives in Makassar city, with the following criteria: (1) a maximum 50 years old single mother, (2) single mother with children, (3) has been a single parent since her children were still young or at school-age and not married anymore. Research object is the successful children of the single mother. The ’successful children” in this research refer to those children who have an undergraduate title and/or work.

4. Analysis and discussion

Research on the role of a single parent regarding their child's success is a study with profound observations. In this study, researchers refer to literatures which contains results that have relevance information needed for the research, including the thesis written by VeronikaPratjipto, Factors Influencing Parenting of Single Parent Mother , which employing paper-making techniques of data through in-depth interviews, noted important factors which affects single mother parenting that were divided into two main factors, namely internal factors which consist of educational level, economic status, and background of parenting and external factors which consist of social and physical environment and culture.

Several studies related to communication of single-parent mothers and their According to (Hurlock, 1999) single parents refer to the parents who have been a widower or widow, either a father or mother, assumes responsibility for the maintenance of their children after the death of their spouse, divorce, or births outside of marriage. Then, Sager et al (in Duval & Miller, 1995 ) state that single parents are parents who raise their children alone without the presence of support and responsibility of spouses. In line with the opinion of (Sager et al, Perlmutter and Hall, 1985) states that single parent is parents without a partner who continues who raise their children.

Communication between single parents and their children is reflected in the management of privacy. Privacy management in communications (communication privacy management theory) developed by Sandra Petronio focuses on the management between the desire to openness/possession of openness or be closed (privacy), between making themselves as part of the public (being public) or private (being private). According to (Petronio, 2013), individuals involved in a relationship with other individuals will constantly manage the border lines or the boundary in them which is between the public and the private spheres; between feelings and thoughts that they want to share with others and those that they want to keep for themselves.

Single parents and children use communication to manage the opposite potentials that may damage their relationship. Dialogue is a way to better understanding of fluctuations in their relationship. According to ( Baxter, 2013 ), relationships basically have dynamic natures, and communication is an attempt on how people manage their similarities and differences. In fact, communication leads toward similarities, yet it also creates, maintains, and manages differences. The notion of relationship is multidimensional, and a number of perspectives are needed to understand them completely.

A similar opinion was found in (DeVito, 1997), where he noted that the success of an information is determined by the nature and quality of the relationship between the individuals concerned and contains five general considerations, namely: openness, empathy, supportiveness, positivity, and equality.

Shannon and Weaver ( Cangara, 2007 ) argued that communication is a form of human interaction interplay that affects each other, intentionally or unintentionally. This is not limited to the forms of communication using verbal language as it also applied to terms of facial expressions, painting, art, and technology.

In the above definition, it is clear that human communication can only occur if there is someone who conveys a message to others for specific purposes. This means that communication can only happen when supported by the source of the message (the communicator), the message (message), media (channel), and receiver (communicant). The five elements are then referred to the elements of communication.

Interpersonal communication is the basic unit of communication. Interpersonal communication event includes almost all informal communication and pleasantries, everyday conversations conducted during the morning wake up to go back to bed. Most of the interpersonal communications take place face to face. Whenever done face to face, there will be personal contact between communicators with the communicants. In this case, when communicators convey a message, the feedback is instant. The communicator is able to determine the response of his communicant in real time.

Interpersonal communication is also a communication that includes the closest human relationships, i.e. communication between two people who love each other. Bochner (L.Tubbs and Moss, 2000) states that interpersonal relationship relates to the process of establishing individual relationships – closer, deep, personal and intimate bonds. The benefits of communication are clear and real.

Dyadic nature of interpersonal communication involves thinking, feelings, opinions, and expectations and action-reaction. If a communicator is already quite familiar with the sociological and psychological state of the communicant then he can adjust the messages according to the needs of the communicants and, therefore, interpersonal communication always leads to interplay on both sides.

In his book, (DeVito, 1997) states that successfully conveying information is determined by the nature and quality of the relationship between the individuals concerned and contains the following five general elements:

Openness . The quality of disclosure refers to at least three aspects of interpersonal communication. First, effective interpersonal communicators should be open to the person whom they interact. This does not mean that people should immediately open all of their life history. This indeed may be exciting, but it usually does not help communication. Instead, there must be a self-willingness to open the information that is usually hidden, whenever the disclosure is worth regarded. The second aspect refers to the willingness of communicators to honestly react to incoming stimulus. People who are silent, non critical, and no response, is generally a tedious conversation participants. We want people to react openly to what we say. And we have a right to expect this. Ignorance is amongst the worst things and disagreement even much more enjoyable. We demonstrate openness in the way that it reacts spontaneously to others. The third aspect concerns the "ownership" of feelings and thoughts. Being open in this sense is to recognize that feelings and thoughts that we are communicating are indeed ours and we are responsible for it. The best way to express this responsibility is the message that using the word I (first person singular)

Empathy . Henry Backrack defines empathy as “a person’s ability to “know” what is being experienced by others at a certain moment, from the perspective of the other person, seeing through the eyes of that other people.” On the other hand, sympathize refers to feel for others or feeling sorry for the related sadness. Empathy is positioning us in the same position as those affected; we are in the same boat and experience the same emotions in a similar way. Empathetic people are able to understand the motivation and experiences of others, their feelings, and attitudes, as well as their hopes and desires for the future. Empathy can be communicated both verbally and non-verbally. By non-verbally, we can communicate empathy by showing (1) active engagement with it through facial expressions and appropriate gestures, (2) centralized concentration including eyes contact, attentive posture, and physical proximity, and (3) appropriate touch or caress.

Supportiveness. The effective interpersonal relationship is a relationship where there is a supportive attitude. Open and empathetic communication cannot take place in an atmosphere that contains no supportive aspects. Supportiveness can be shown by being (1) descriptive, not evaluative, (2) spontaneous and not strategic, and (3) provisional and not overconfident.

Positivity. We communicate a positive attitude in interpersonal communication by at least two ways: (1) express a positive attitude and (2) positively encourage people who become our interaction partners. Positive attitude covers at least two aspects of interpersonal communication. Firstly, interpersonal communication is constructed when a person has a positive attitude towards themselves. Secondly, positive feelings for the communication situation are, in general, very important for effective interaction. There is no fun to communicate with people who do not enjoy the interaction or does not react favorably to the situation or interactions atmosphere.

Equality . Inequality may occur in many situations. One side may be cleverer, richer, more handsome or beautiful, or more athletic than others. There are no two individuals who are truly equal in all aspects. Apart from this inequality, interpersonal communication is more effective if the atmosphere is similar. That is, there must be a tacit acknowledgment that both parties are equally valuable and precious, and each party has something important to contribute.

The need to organize and maintain satisfactory interpersonal communication with others is in connection with love and affection. Affection always shows the relationship between two people or parties. Affective behavior is behavior that is intended to fulfill interpersonal needs for affection. Affective behavior indicates that there is an intimate relationship between two people and engage each other emotionally.

The frequency and intensity of single mothers in communicating with children play an important role in creating attitudes and behaviors of openness, empathy, supportiveness, positive attitude and equality. Frequency refers to how often communication occurs between mother and child or vice versa in one day while intensity is the length of communication that occurs between a single mother and child or vice versa. For attitude and openness behavior, children are more open to tell their problems to her mother (single mother) without feeling shy or worried. Problems range from their subjects in the study to social problems, both in the school environment and home. Empathy is created between a child and a single mother, in which the child becomes aware of the condition of his mother (single mother) who must struggle with herself in earning a living and raising her children. Children do not demand or ask for unimportant things, such as expensive clothes, expensive bags or expensive shoes. Children are more concerned in living their lives. Supportiveness, positive attitude and equality occur alternately between single mother and child. They support each other in living their lives, acting and behaving positively for everything that befell them and share the same destiny. Communication between a single mother and child is always colored by effort to find common ground, especially when discussing about a problem, the child's problem or the mother's. Mothers are always able to give advice to their children, but sometimes children often give advice back to their mother in making a solution of the problem. Nevertheless, mothers are the ones who keep control of children's activities and behaviors, and at the same time, affection persists among them.

Figure 1.
 A single mother and child family patterns

A single mother and child family patterns

5. Conclusion

The study discusses the role of single parents in the success of their children. Research is carried out by in-depth interviews with single parents and their children regarding the elements of openness, empathy, supportiveness, positivity, equality between single parents and their children. By this in-depth interview, it is expected to found inhibiting factors that experienced by single parents in parenting pattern that they apply in nurturing their children. The final result expected is the discovery of the ideal pattern of single-parent roles for their children.

Baxter , R. ( 2013 ), The Practical Works of Richard Baxter: With a Life of the Author and a Critical Examination (Vol. 11 ). London : Forgotten Books . (Original work published 1830)

Cangara , H. ( 2007 ), Pengantar Ilmu Komunikasi . Jakarta : PT. Raja Grafinfo

Cresswell , J. W. ( 1998 ), Qualitative Inquiry and Research Design: Choosing Among Five Tradition . London : Sage Publication .

Devito , J. A. ( 1997 ), Komunikasi Antar Manusia (edisi Kelima) Terjemahan oleh Agus Maulana . Jakarta : Karisma Publishing Group .

Duval , E. and Miller , C. M. ( 1985 ), Marriage and Family Development 6th ed. New York : Harper and Row Publisher .

All papers within this proceedings volume have been peer reviewed by the scientific committee of the Malikussaleh International Conference on Multidisciplinary Studies (MICoMS 2017).

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The Single-Parent Family

Reviewed by Psychology Today Staff

A single parent is someone who is unmarried, widowed, or divorced and not remarried. The single-parent household can be headed by a mother, a father, a grandparent, an uncle, or aunt. According to the Pew Research Center, between 25 to 30 percent of children under age 18 in the U.S. live in a single-parent household. The U.S. Census reports that roughly 22 million children live with a single parent. And three times as many women, when compared with men, head these households .

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  • The Well-Being of Children in a Single-Parent Household
  • The Challenges of Single-Parent Families
  • Raising Kids as a Single Parent

Single parents should be reassured by the fact that a large number of studies find no differences between the children of single mothers and children from other types of households. One study looked into the lives of children from different kinds of households—two-parent biological, adoptive, step-father, step-mother, single-parent—and the type of household did not matter. Children’s grades, and their relationships with their siblings and their friends, were about the same across all households. In a survey of adolescents living in nine types of households, those who lived with parents who had always been single and who were being raised in multi-generational households reported the highest sense of well-being of all those surveyed.

In studies as well as many reports from children themselves, children are better off raised by a single parent as opposed to living with married parents who engage in constant conflict. Children raised by one divorced parent sometimes have better outcomes than children raised by a parent who is remarried. It is impossible to predict a child's outcome based on this one factor alone. 

Yes. Every situation involves trade-offs, and they often go unrecognized at the time. In a common refrain, the grown child of a single, working mom reported that he was glad that his mom was busy all the time. His friends, by contrast, had moms who stayed at home. These parents were hyper-involved in their lives, including their schoolwork and schedules. This overbearing participation produced problems between parent and child.

Yes, but this is a risk for married parents as well. Some parents rely too heavily on a child for emotional support. These individuals become enmeshed with their child because of their own low self-esteem, loneliness, neediness, insecurity, or other similar reasons. These parents lack boundaries, preferring to be a best friend rather than a parent.

The vast majority of the children of single parents flourish at home and in later life. In a national survey of substance abuse among more than 22,000 adolescents from different kinds of households, the rate of substance abuse among the children of single parents was 5.7 percent, and the rate for the children of married parents was 4.5%. 

Not at all. More often, the children of single parents defy all stereotypes . If problems arise, they likely already existed when a child's parents were married or arise independent of the household configuration. These children were struggling in their nuclear family. Researchers who followed children of married parents for more than a decade, not knowing in advance whether the parents would stay married or divorce, found that among the children whose parents did divorce and who had problems, their difficulties began at a young age.

Children need a safe and reliable household to flourish. Of course, it is much harder for single-parents who live with financial hardship. The Bureau of Labor Statistics data show that nearly 11 million people are considered working poor. The definition of working poor is an individual who spends 27 weeks or more in the workforce, this person is working or looking for work, yet their income is below the poverty level. And according to the U.S. Census, single moms are one of the most disadvantaged groups—with nearly 30 percent living in poverty. Many of these single moms cannot provide for their families as they often have lower-paying jobs.

Being the sole parent of a household may mean you are the boss, free of quarrels over money and finance. That’s great, but according to research, it costs $234,000 to raise a child . This price tag impacts the high risk of financial hardship.

This should not be a source of concern or guilt, even though it often is. Children of mothers who return to work while the children are infants and toddlers, fare the same behaviorally and academically compared with children whose mothers stay home. In one study, kids from single-parent families , whose mothers worked, had better academic scores and fewer behavioral problems than did children whose mothers did not work.

The U.S. Census Bureau reports that at two years after the breakup of their family, nearly 50 percent of children who live with their mother do not see their father regularly. Many fathers are often shortchanged by custody arrangements. However, a father showing interest and being involved with his children is a huge plus for all. One way to help this along: Help your ex. Pick up the children from school, attend their functions, and cheer them on at games--this involvement can make a difference. Helping your ex will help you. By being an involved father, you and your kids will find ways to spend more time together.

To raise successful children in any family configuration, stability and security matter. Single parents can help ensure such an environment by developing a supportive network of friends, relatives, and neighbors. People who care. For those with extreme financial hardship, there are resources in your community including assistance for housing, food, and healthcare for children, depending on income and other criteria. 

To raise thriving children, a single parent must juggle many aspects of life, the household, work demands, finances, among many other concerns. All parents face similar obstacles, but the challenge for a single-parent is greater.

Set house rules with your kids.

Give undivided attention to each child, even a daily 10-minute one-one conversation will help.

Set boundaries, boundaries, boundaries.

Be consistent and fair, always.

Kids need schedules and routines (sounds boring, but it works).

Lower your expectations, and do away with any ideas of perfection.

Lose your sense of guilt, victimhood, and martyrdom.

Ignore judgmental people.

You need support through good childcare, friends, family, neighbors.

If possible, get along with your ex. (To do so, you need to get over yourself.)

Apply self-care daily, eat right, exercise, sleep, meditate. (If you do not have time, make the time.)

If you need therapy, a good family therapist will help.

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  • v.11(7); 2022 Jul

Experiences of single-parent children in the current Indian context

Omisha sangeet.

1 Department of Psychology, University of Delhi, Delhi, India

Shyodan Singh

2 Department of Psychology, Zakir Husain Delhi College University of Delhi, New Delhi, India

Background:

Single-parent family structure involves only one parent responsible for rearing the child and their welfare. Among all types of families, single-parent families can have difficult individual and social experiences, which may affect both single parents as well as their children. Therefore, the present paper attempts to capture some of the lived experiences and social perceptions of single-parent children qualitatively in the current Indian context.

A qualitative research method was adopted in which data collection was done using semi-structured interviews followed by thematic analysis. The sample consisted of 11 college-going young adults residing in Delhi-NCR with their single mothers since the early years of their lives.

The results indicate that single-parent children participants had mixed experiences where some individuals’ experiences were challenging; at the same time, other experiences led to positive changes and self-growth during the course of their lives. Findings suggest varied experiences of single-parent children in the Indian context, where 82% of participants reported additional “responsibilities” and 54% reported careful “decision making” process; lower “sense of belongingness,” “social stigma,” and higher “resilience” were reflected in responses by the majority of the participants (91%), and lastly, 73% reported difficulty in “emotional regulation.”

Conclusion:

Experiences of single-parent children can be both positive and negative. Strengths such as an increased sense of responsibility, decision-making, and resilience can be considered while dealing with the unique challenges faced by them.

Introduction

Parenthood has always been an important area of research in psychology; various theorists and researchers have focused on different types of family structures and parenthood. Parents perform multiple culturally, socially, and biologically determined roles to ensure the development and well-being of their children.[ 1 ] Parental roles are mainly divided among both parents in dual-parent families (also known as intact families). Still, a breakdown in the family may lead to a different family structure altogether called a single-parent family. Single parenting can be understood as the availability of only one parent to take up the responsibility of two people for nurturing and rearing the child.[ 2 ]

Lately, the social shift in gender roles may have contributed to an increasing parental separation and single parenthood in society. According to recent statistics, globally, 320 million children under 17 years of age have been found living in single-parent families, and specifically in the Indian context, approximately 2.3 million children live with single parents.[ 3 ]

Single parenthood is not always an outcome of a breakdown in the family; it can also be a choice considering a rapid cultural shift in society. The possible reasons for single-parent family structure can include the death of one of the parents, divorce or separation of the parents, single unmarried biological parent, and single unmarried adoptive parent. Single parenthood may have an impact on the family’s economic and social conditions along with individual family members’ psycho-social position in terms of their relationships with one another and parenting capabilities.

Where single parenthood has been a common phenomenon, it is believed that single motherhood can be filled with a great deal of emotional, economic, and social challenges.[ 4 ] The challenges may not be limited to the single parent but can also be experienced by their children as a result of the absence of a father, given the patriarchy and cultural norms in India, where there may be a social stigma attached to single-parent mothers and their children.

Few researchers in the past have worked on highlighting the strengths of single-parent families as opposed to only focusing on the negative impact of single parenthood.[ 5 , 6 ] These studies have suggested that 75% of single-parent children were found to be well adjusted as individual entities. Some conclusions that can be drawn from the research are that single-parent families usually require a period of 1–2 years to adapt, children are able to adjust with diverse custody arrangements, and success of the family cannot be attributed to just one single factor.[ 6 ]

In recent years, single-parent families have increased rapidly, and researchers are paying attention to emotional, social, and economic problems and challenges faced by single-parent families, including the parent and their children in the Indian situation.[ 3 , 4 ]

Significance of the Study

Separation or death of parents can be a traumatic experience for children. It brings sudden changes in family structure and socio-emotional and financial experiences. Psychological and physiological problems may manifest from unresolved traumatic experiences in single-parent children. For instance, negative remarks or micro-insults significantly affects the person’s overall well-being as in the long run, these may create conflict and stress, in turn increasing the risk of traumatic stress symptoms and depression.[ 7 ] Lack of social support has been linked with physical and mental health outcomes such as heart disease[ 8 ] and mortality.[ 9 ] On similar lines, several other studies suggest that children brought up by single mothers are at higher risk of developing conditions such as depression, anxiety, substance abuse, and externalizing behavior.[ 10 , 11 , 12 , 13 , 14 ] To deal with such difficulties faced by single-parent children as a result of prolonged trauma, psychologists and physicians can come together to provide better care. For the same, current exploration of experiences of single-parent children is required in contemporary times, which not only helps in understanding unique challenges but also any strength that such children may develop over time. Therefore, the present research explores and understands lived experiences and perceptions of single-parent children in the current scenario and intends to capture positive adaptations resulting from a new family structure.

This paper explores and understands young adults’ lived experiences and social perceptions as single-parent children in the current Indian context.

Purposive sampling was used in the present study, and 11 college-going women in the age range of 18–25 years residing in Delhi-NCR with their single mothers participated. It was ensured that the participants had at least an experience of 1 or more than a year living in a single-parent family structure since their parent’s divorce/separation or the death of their father.

The data were collected using a semi-structured interview consisting of 8–10 questions around their intrapersonal and interpersonal experiences as single-parent children as well as their perception about social reactions and perceived differences from dual-parent families. Interviews were then analyzed using thematic analysis. The codes were first generated out of the responses given by participants, followed by the categorization of codes from which different themes were extracted.

Result & Discussion

The following themes were extracted from the interviews of single-parent children living with their single mothers in the current Indian context:

1. Perceived Responsibilities

Responsibility can be understood as accepting the consequences of the chosen actions.[ 15 ] However, in some situations, actions may not be chosen by the person, yet they have to accept and perform specific tasks as additional responsibilities.

On such lines, 82% of single-parent children in the present study were found to experience an increased sense of responsibility as a result of the absence of the father. Participants reported sharing the financial load of the mother by started working at an early age, where a participant stated, “ I got over with my 12 th standard because my parents separated, so my mom was the only one earning so I had to work as well, and I started teaching in a daycare .” Another participant said, “ both of us siblings have also taken up little-little responsibilities in the absence of support .”

Children of separated or divorced parents understood their parents’ worry as they were constantly aware that their parents were pressed financially with a single earning person in the family.[ 16 ] It can be inferred from the responses of the participants that the children actively acknowledge the obligations and financial burden of the mother as a single parent and make efforts to share the responsibility among the family members, as also suggested by a previous study[ 4 ] that financial problems were one of the main stressors for the majority of the single mothers, which interviewees also shared. Participants also highlighted other spheres of their lives where they reported handling college admissions or legal paperwork independently from an early age. One of them said, “ I never took my mother for my college admissions, I did myself because I know she’s working and has other responsibilities .”

One of the participants also shared a recent incident of her sister handling all the arrangements of her own wedding as a result of her father’s demise. Children had to pitch in for responsibilities, which if given a choice, they probably would not have taken up, as reported by a participant, “ I would have liked to just surpass that phase of responsibility .” Children of separated parents are generally required to assume new responsibilities and obligations.[ 17 ]

Therefore, it can be concluded that the heightened level of maturity that comes with the early acceptance of additional responsibilities presents itself as an ability to relate with adults’ perspectives and may foster a sense of self-reliance in single-parent children.

2. Decision-making

Building on acceptance of additional roles and responsibilities by the children as partners in the family’s decision-making process, they are required to be more careful with the decisions they take for themselves and their families, as reported by 54% of the participants.

One participant shared that she did not go abroad for education despite receiving a scholarship as the remaining expenses were still a huge cost, which would have been difficult to pay by her mother alone; instead, she joined a government college and started modeling to support her education. From this, it can be inferred that single-parent children tend to prioritize their parents’ struggles over their own desires. Another participant reported to have been very careful with the social responses she gave as she was cordial and courteous in conversation even when it was not reciprocated. She also shared about the possible pressure on single-parent children to make better choices as they are expected to be more careful. “ It’s ok if you want to do this, but take good decisions, study hard and don’t engage in bad habits .”

The consequences of the decisions made by children of dual parents fall on both parents, while this may not be the case in single-parent families, thus adding a responsibility to be more cautious, be it in terms of allocating their resources or academic and social decisions. In addition, past studies[ 18 , 19 ] suggest that single-parent children are presented with more opportunities to be involved in decision-making in the family, which may be a possible reason for children being extra careful in their choices.

3. Sense of Belongingness

According to the Hierarchy of Needs model, belongingness is one of the fundamental human needs that can affect an individual emotionally, socially, and psychologically.[ 20 ] Individuals spending time together, being protected and accepted by each other, having fun together, participating in day-to-day work, and having a sense that they are part of the family constitute a feeling of belongingness toward one’s family.[ 21 , 22 ]

Family structure is an important variable that tends to influence one’s sense of family belongingness.[ 23 ] The majority (91%) of the participants reported a lowered sense of belongingness when it came to their families or otherwise in intimate relationships. One participant shared that “ I feel when you are a single-parent child, there is less belongingness to the family. I don’t know like the moment I saw my family scattering I felt that I am also a different part rather than being in a collective family .” Past literature suggests that relationship experiences within the family have an impact on belongingness.[ 24 ] In the present study also, a participant reported, “ This is like we don’t talk much now I like her I love her, but we don’t talk much now as compared to earlier, this can be associated with her experience of the lowered sense of belongingness .” From this, it can be inferred that the family environment may influence one’s sense of belongingness, which can significantly contribute to single-parent children’s lives.

Moreover, attachment theory suggests the intrinsic need of individuals to form emotional connections,[ 25 , 26 ] and object relations theory emphasizes the significance of close parent–child relationships.[ 27 , 28 ] In case of disharmony in parent–child relationship, consequent difficulty may be experienced in establishing other intimate relationships, which was again reported by a participant where she stated, “ I would say that whenever like I feel emotionally intimate, I would retreat and maybe that is something because I don’t want to get hurt so I don’t really get intimate that easily so I would say I stay guarded a little .”

Therefore, specifically in the case of single-parent children where a positive family environment is perceived, including having a fulfilling mother–child relationship, it may add to an enhanced sense of belongingness.

4. Social Stigma

One of the major challenges faced by most of the participants (91%) included perceived social stigma around the current family structure of single parenthood as a result of an absence of a father. It is socially perceived that father’s absence can leave members of the family without a disciplinarian.[ 29 ] It was also stated by a participant sharing “ I guess there is less discipline and mother are taken lightly, still, we do everything, but I have seen friends and families with their fathers, it’s not same .” Though it can be noted that in some cases where single-parent children are in a joint family, extended family members take the role of a father figure, due to the cultural shift, more nuclear families are observed in India, and that can leave children with no father figure leading to a different set of personal and social challenges.

Acknowledging these challenges, participants highlighted their lack of enthusiasm and willingness to participate in social gatherings. A participant reported, “ I’ve been avoiding going to get together and everything as well for a very long time because I just want to avoid those conversations .” Lower social and recreational participation by single-parent children is noted on account of lack of social acceptance.[ 3 ]

Another finding in the present study was a common experience of social judgment toward single mothers as well as their children. This was shared during the interview when a participant said “ a lot of accusations and blames and tension in my family from my father’s side even from my mother’s side of the family when we lost our father .” Another one shared, “ Relatives say so many things which I feel they couldn’t have said in the presence of my father .” Based on the responses, it can be inferred that participants reflect perceived social stigma and lack of social support as single-parent children, which may lead to a socially challenging experience, reducing their motivation to seek social support or engage socially. In addition, multiple participants in the present study reported experiencing feelings of sadness and vulnerability as there is constant judgment and comments that act as social reminders by extended relatives about the absence of male representatives in the family.

5. Emotional Regulation

Parental separation can be emotionally traumatic for the children, and studies show that single-parent children can experience confusion, feelings of embarrassment, and emotional stress.[ 30 ] They tend to experience a lack of discipline, sense of warmth, and aggression,[ 31 ] which was also reported by 54% of the participants. A participant shared “ I feel that I have bottled up a lot of emotions each time that I felt bad… because I feel let it be, let them say, it doesn’t matter but there will be a time that this might come out as a volcano .” Another participant reported a lack of discipline as she stated, “ I am stubborn, and my sister is also aggressive, but there is some discipline when fathers are there, some set of rules .”

Past literature also suggests that single-parent children tend to develop feelings of abandonment and sadness.[ 3 ] Psycho-social needs of the children may be compromised as a single parent needs to take up the roles of the other parent as well, which was highlighted by a participant who stated, “ I’d say because there was so much focus on her being the provider being an officer being somebody who spends about 70% of her day in the office, so I spent barely 2–3 hours with her, and I think that sort of definitely affected our emotional bond .” At the same time, the participants also exhibited empathy toward the condition of the mother as a single parent. Acknowledging their parents’ struggles, single-parent children develop elevated emotional regulation and problem-solving abilities. They also tend to develop the ability to manage their expectations and disappointments better and feel motivated to share their burden.[ 32 ]

6. Resilience

Single parent households undergo a shift with respect to dimensions such as relationships, family roles, and economic conditions that impact overall family functioning and adaptations by individual family members.[ 33 ] As reflected in the present study responses, after the change in family structure, single-parent children opted for roles they would not have had if their father had been present. For example, “ I felt I was trying. I was actually trying too hard when I was working because we don’t have that habit that you have to start working the moment you turn 18 .”

Children started working and financially contributing to the family at an early age; there was acceptance and adaptability toward new additional roles. After acknowledging their changed economic and psycho-social positions, the majority (91%) of the participants displayed a tendency to invoke resilience by taking initiative, working on relationships, and displaying perseverance, which are also some of the dimensions discussed in a study as seven protective characteristics of resilience: vision, freedom, associations, initiative, humor, creativity, and morality.[ 34 ]

Previous literature reflects that women experienced high personal resilience,[ 35 ] which is in line with the present research findings where higher adaptability with time was reported by the participants who were all females, as one mentioned: “ I’m also very used to living without my father right now and my mother has taken up that role and both of us siblings have also took up little responsibility .”

It can also be noted that individuals with higher adaptability show personality traits such as agreeableness and flexibility, which are important contributing factors toward resilience.[ 36 , 37 ] These may be possible factors contributing to personal resilience in the present study as well.

Conclusion and Recommendations

This study explored the lived experiences and social perceptions of single-parent family structures in the current times. Findings reflect that young adults living with their single mothers tend to accept additional responsibilities. Lack of social support and difficult emotional responses were expressed; however, they also reported to have high resilience as single-parent children. It is recommended that a fulfilling family environment along with optimum social support can have a positive impact on the lives of single-parent families. Also, a collaborative network of psychologists and physicians can be of great help dealing with specific concerns of children from single-parent families.

Financial support and sponsorship

Conflicts of interest.

There are no conflicts of interest.

Mental health status of unmarried youth living in single parent families: a case study from India

Affiliation.

  • 1 a International Institute for Population Sciences (IIPS) , Mumbai , India.
  • PMID: 29451041
  • DOI: 10.1080/09638237.2018.1437612

Background : In South Asian countries like India, family system lays a strong foundation in societies and therefore, the context and consequences of single parent family structures are markedly different from that of the West. In these societies single parenthood is mainly an outcome of untimely death of any one of the parents. Aims : This study tried to examine the influence of parents' survival status on the mental health of youth in India. Methods : "Youth in India: situation and Needs (2006-2007)" survey data was used in the present study. We compared two groups of unmarried young population aged 15-24 y ( n = 28 637): one having both parents alive and another having only one parent alive. Bivariate and multivariate techniques were applied to analyze the data. Results : Results revealed that around 11% of the unmarried youth belonged to single parent families. Findings underscored a significant association between parent's survival and mental health of youth; respondents from single parent families were more likely to report metal health problems Moreover, effects of parents' survival were significant on females' mental health rather than males'. Conclusion : Policies must focus on reducing stress of young people growing up in single parent families through enhanced educational and employment opportunities.

Keywords: India; Single parent family; mental health; unmarried; youth.

  • Health Status
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  • Single-Parent Family / psychology*
  • Young Adult

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Single Parenting – Case Study

single parent family case study

Sikha Sehgal is a single mother after her husband expired in a road accident. She is 29 years old and has a child who is 7 years old. Soon after her husband expired Sikha got very depressed and tried to commit suicide. The maternal grandparents were unable to handle the situation. The child was subject to verbal abuse and Sikha went through constant nagging about re-marriage. Since they were also unable to support their daughter and grandchild financially, they forcibly remarried Sikha hoping that she would find stability in her new marriage However, since Sikha was still mentally unsettled, and now had to deal with a new husband and a new household, she could not concentrate on the child’s welfare. In the process, the child was confused, shattered, and left without even one parent.

In a scenario as above, the grandparents should have stepped in to take care of their grandson without any abuse or blame till Sikha was physically and mentally healthy enough to take care of her child. Also, special counseling and help should have been given to Sikha so that she would be capable of handling her grief and sorrow and also focus on her newfound responsibilities. The forced marriage not only shattered Sikha but also her son. Hence her parents should have waited for her to recover and given her the choice of remarriage. In certain cases, the widow might not want another marriage. A single caring and good parent is better than a bad second parent.

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Top Questions on Single Parenting

  • I am a working single parent and cannot fulfill the roles of both parents. I sense my child feels a vacuum when she sees the fathers of other kids doing things with them. How can I make up?
  • I lost my wife due to health issues 6 months back. I feel very guilty that my children don’t have the love of a mother. Should I re-marry just to provide my children the love of both parents?

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COMMENTS

  1. Single Parenting: Impact on Child's Development

    Baer (1999) reported that adolescents in single-parent families have more conflict with their parents, ... With or without you—starting single-parent families: A qualitative study on how single parents by choice reorganize their lives to facilitate single parenthood from a life course perspective. J Fam Issues. 2020;41(11):2223-2248.

  2. Solo Fathers and Mothers: An Exploration of Well-Being, Social Support

    The present study, to our knowledge, is the first comparative investigation of solo fathers and solo mothers. As both family types are headed by a single parent, the study enabled the role of parental gender on parental well-being in solo parent families to be examined, controlling for the use of assisted reproduction to start a family.

  3. With or Without You

    With or Without You - Starting Single-parent Families: A Qualitative Study on How Single Parents by Choice Reorganise Their Lives to Facilitate Single Parenthood from a Life Course Perspective. ... Case . Exploring the Influences on Teenage Pregnancy Decision Making Using the Listening Guide Data Analysis Method. Show details Hide details.

  4. Single Mother Parenting and Adolescent Psychopathology

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  6. The Impact of Financial Hardship on Single Parents: An Exploration of

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  7. Full article: Growing up in single-parent families and the criminal

    Many children grow up in a single-parent family, meaning that often children grow up in a family with only one biological parent present. ... 18 studies based on a cross-sectional design, and 12 studies based on a case-control design. Respectively 36 and 11 of the 48 included studies were conducted in North America and Europe; only one study ...

  8. Single parenting and today's family

    The single parent may feel overwhelmed by the responsibilities of juggling caring for the children, maintaining a job, and keeping up with the bills and household chores. And typically, the family's finances and resources are drastically reduced following the parents' breakup. Single parent families deal with many other pressures and ...

  9. (PDF) Lived Experience of Solo Parents: A Case Study

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  10. PDF ISSN: 2456-9992 Lived Experiences of Solo Parents: A Case Study

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  12. Single Mother Role in the Success of their Children

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  14. The Single-Parent Family

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  15. Experiences of single-parent children in the current Indian context

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  16. Mental health status of unmarried youth living in single parent

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  17. Single Parents and the Work Setting: The Impact of Multiple Job and

    acquired in studies of AFDC single mothers and of clinical case studies of children of single parent families (Brandwein, 1974; Feldman & Feldman, 1975; Herzog & Sudia, 1971; Hetherington, 1983; Keller & Murray, 1973; Morrison, 1974; Wallerstein & Kelly, 1975). Another vein of study, however, has recently begun to view the single parent family

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