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Research paper on children of single parent households
Research paper on children of single parent households
Single parent families and the effect on the children
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There is a startling 17.6% of youth under 18 in poverty (Baca Zinn, 2009, p. 195). The younger the child is the greater the probability of living in poverty is for them. Children in working poor households tend to have their parents more absent from their life. Working poor parents have to make ends meet, even if that means working day and night. This is an even more prominent problem for single parents because this means they need to find another source of childcare.
In addition to higher poverty rates, blacks suffer from concentrated poverty. 50 percent of African American children live in neighborhoods with concentrated poverty, compared to only a little more than a tenth of poor white children who live in similar neighborhoods. Children in neighborhoods with concentrated poverty experience more social and behavioral problems, have lower grades, and are more likely to drop out of high school. Recent studies have suggested that reducing children’s exposure to concentrated poverty can improve their chances of better economic mobility and a brighter future
According to the PBS Frontline video “Poor Kids” 2012, more than 46 million Americans are living beneath the poverty line. The United States alone has one of the highest rates of child poverty in the industrialized world. It is stated that 1 out of 5 children are living in poverty. The video documented the lives of three families who are faced with extreme hardships and are battling to survive a life of being poor. All three families have more than one child and could barely afford to pay their bills and purchase food for their household.
“The greatest predictor of whether Americans are poor is not geography, however; the greatest predictors are race-ethnicity, education, and the sex of the person who heads the family.” (Henslin, 2013, p. 212). Race-ethnicity is one of the strongest factors of poverty. There is a common stereotype that Latinos and African Americans are the most poor; however, the Caucasians in America are the most poor. There are a smaller percentage of poor Caucasians, but there are a larger total number of Caucasians as a collective ethnic race within America causing them to have a lower percentage than other races, but they have the poorest people in America.
Vonnie McLoyd discusses in the book Child Development that black families are more likely to face poverty in America and the effects that poverty has on those children. McLoyd states that children that have faced poverty in their lives can have “impaired socioemotional functioning” (McLoyd 311). As a result from job loss creating parental stress, parents often become
The official poverty rate is 13.5 percent based on the U.S Census Bureau’s 2015 estimates, that same year an estimated 43.1 million Americans lived in poverty. (U.S Census Bureau) There are millions of Americans that go unnoticed to society and government due to their low financial stability and poor living situations. They constantly deal with low provisions, low employment, bad health, and high rates of poverty. Majority of this happens to the minorities in this country, and it dates back since the 1900’s. The minorities being the last to be concerned about, but since then low income communities have been generified, which has improved the living conditions bring in more people, jobs, and better housing, but it still takes years for the
Within the class of those living in poverty, people of color face the largest ramifications of poverty. All the ethnic minorities in this country combined only make up 37% of the population yet constitute 60% of those living in poverty (Poverty Rates). One question must be answered before finding solutions to this problem: what causes the discrepancy of wealth between ethnic minorities and caucasians? The answer lies in the way social disadvantages become a cumulative process. Simply put, any form of disadvantage gives way more easily to other forms of disadvantages, causing a “magnifying” of effects (Lin, David).
According to Rector and Sheffield 's report, the 200 census said that one out of seven Americans are poor. It also mentions that for the past two decades over 30 million Americans have been living in poverty. Wikipedia defines poverty as the condition of one who does not have a specific measure of material belonging or cash. However, too many average Americans “poverty” means material hardship, failure to supply a family with enough food, a safe place to live, and clothes. The report mentions that many advocates agree with this view and that the news enhances this belief through stories on needy families, individuals living in disintegrating shacks, or lines of the homeless eating in soup kitchens.
The Effects of Poverty in America “In 2007 about one out of every eight children in America was on food stamps. Today that number is one out of every five” (U.S Census Bureau). This statistic from the U.S Census Bureau illustrates how the poverty level of Americans is getting worse and worse. This statistic explains what every day poor American families must face and that it also greatly affects the lives of their children. In today’s society, America is ailed by the instantaneous increase of Americans living in poverty, causing families to take several risks in order to provide all of their family’s necessities.
Another cause of poverty and lack of income is whether or not children are American citizens. “..immigrants from Asia had a poverty rate of 12.8 percent while 21.9 percent of Latin American immigrants were poor.” It is obvious that there is a big difference in poverty between children who were born in the U.S versus children who were born outside of the U.S. This could be due to the fact that it is harder for people who were born outside of the U.S, immigrants, to time find a job. “Among the children of immigrants, poverty rates in 1999 varied from a low of 9.5 percent among non-Hispanic whites to 32.9 percent among Mexicans.”
Child Poverty in the U.S About nine months after conception, newborns come out of the wombs and come to the world. The newborns must be the most beautiful gift the mothers have ever received. It is always moved that the mothers finally see their babies after have waited for long time. The newborns start their new journey in the world. Meanwhile, the babies will embody tomorrow’s world.
“Do some children have advantages that are not available to other children with differing backgrounds? In educational and economic studies, it has been found that background variables including family income, family type, family size, and parents ' education are determinants of the amount and quality of education children receive over their lifetime” (QTD De Serf 3). Not only do these variables have great effect on the achievement of a child 's education, but it 's also notable that ethnic groups plays an important part in the equation. “Blacks ' poverty rates are proportionately higher than whites. With increased poverty, Wilson discusses increases in crime, joblessness, and out-of-wedlock births (1987).
He insisted that they need to work for political and social change to lift people out of poverty, but the ways to support the families can [also] be part of the picture. Limitations of the study include the fact that parenting and socioeconomic circumstances were only assessed at one time point and also there are not data on brain development and other factors with regards to [the] adolescence that could influence the result. The study also doesn’t prove that poverty can cause differences to the brain development seen among teens or any changes that can be seen over time in an individual children. According to Jamie Hanson of the University of Pittsburgh in Pennsylvania, and who has not involved in the study, the relationship between the environment and biology continues the conversation about the increased risks that is associated with low socioeconomic status, such as poor mental health, physical health, school readiness, academic success, high school completion, and job
These statistics are overwhelming due to the fact that child poverty affects all areas of their lives. Children exposed to poverty at such a young age are at a disadvantage in several areas; these children are at risk of low academic achievement, resulting in lasting negative effects. Our economy is not able to thrive if child poverty continues. Children living in poverty are also at risk of dropping out of school, being unemployed, and entering the juvenile justice system. Our government is responsible for ensuring that child poverty ceases to be an issue in the United States.
Who Is Poor, Social, Economic, and Housing Statistics Division, US Census Bureau, Volume 16, Number 3S46-3S51 Boivin, M., Booij, L, Cote, S., Lambert, J., Mazza, J., Pingault, J-B., Tremblay, R., & Zunzunegui, M. (2017). Poverty and behavior problems during early childhood: The mediating role of maternal depression symptoms and parenting, Vol 41 (6) pages 670-680 Kaplan, S., Madden, V., Mijanovich, T., & Purcaro, E. (2013). The Perception of Stress and its Impact on Health in Poor Communities 38: pages 142-149. DOI1 Burke, L. (2013). Head Start’s sad and costly secret---what Washington doesn’t want you to know, http://www.foxnews.com/opinion/2013/01/14/head-start-sad-and-costlu-secret-what-washington-doesnt-want-to-know.print.html
