parents and children

what proportion of children are born outside of marriage?

½

how many births are jointly registered by both parents?

nearly all

what are the patterns of childbearing?

• parents are cohabiting

• women are having children later

• fewer children

• remaining childless

what are the reasons for the changes in childbearing?

• decline in stigma

• increase in cohabitation

• new options for women that aren’t motherhood

what proportion of families with children are lone-parent families?

22%

how many children live in a lone parent family?

¼

what proportion of lone parent families are headed by mothers?

90%

what is the link between lone parent families and poverty?

child living with a lone parent is 2x as likely to be in poverty than a child with two parents

what are the reasons for the patterns of lone parent families?

• risen due to an increase in divorce, children out of wedlock & separation

• decline in stigma attached to births outside of marriage

• death of a parent is no longer significant cause

why do lone parent families tend to be female headed?

• widespread belief that women are suited to the expressive role

• divorce courts usually give custody of children to mothers

• men are less willing to give up work to care for children

what did Renvoize find about lone mothers?

professional women were able to support their child without the father’s involvement

what did Cashmore find about single mothers?

some working-class mothers with less earning power chose to live on welfare benefits without a partner because they had experienced abuse

what does Murray say about lone parenthood?

it is the result of an over-generous welfare state

what are perverse incentives?

rewards for irresponsible behaviour

what is a dependency culture?

people assume that the state will support them & their children

what is Murray’s solution to lone parenthood?

abolish welfare benefits to reduce dependency culture and births outside marriage

what are the criticisms of the New Right perspective of lone parent families?

• welfare benefits are not generous

• lone parent families are more likely to be in poverty

why are lone parent families more likely to be in poverty?

• lack of affordable childcare prevents lone parents from working - 60% unemployed

• inadequate welfare benefits

• most lone parents are women

• failure of fathers to pay maintenance

what proportion of families are stepfamilies?

10%

what proportion of stepfamilies have a child from the woman’s previous relationship?

85%

what proportion of stepfamilies have a child from the man’s previous marriage?

11%

what do Ferri & Smith say about stepfamilies?

they are very similar to first families

what do Allan & Crow say about stepfamilies?

they may face problems of divided loyalties and issues such as contact with the non-resident parent causing tensions

what are the reasons for the patterns in stepfamilies?

• divorce/separation

• more children in stepfamilies are women’s because children are more likely to remain with mothers post divorce

• stepparents are at a greater risk of poverty because there are more children

• tensions may be the result of a lack of clear social norms about behaviour in step families