Essay Example on Single Parenthood: Impact on Child Growth and Development

Introduction

Parental care plays a significant role in a child's growth and development. The presence of parents enables the children to receive parental love making them feel socially and emotionally love through social attachment. There are some children raised under single parenthood as a result of family divorce, or death of one parent, raising a question if children raised by single parents grow typically or get affected psychologically and physically. Therefore, the primary purpose of this annotation paper is to synthesis two scholarly articles to establish whether single parenthood affects a child's psychological and physical development.

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Chen, M., & Chan, K. L. (2016). Parental absence, child victimization, and psychological well-being in rural China. Child abuse & neglect, 59, 45-54. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S014521341630148X

The source is an insightful academic research finding conducted by Chen and Chan in 2016 examining parental absence effects and impacts on children's psychological well-being and child victimization in china's up-countries. The study used 793 children aged 10 to 16 years of age from Sichuan province by the use of a cross-sectional research data collection method.

The study established that absence of one parent in a family subject child to different forms and types of victimization such as proper crime, sexual victimization, and assaults. Besides, children under single parental care were found to be more prone to child maltreatment that impacts their psychological and physical well-being as a result of traumatization and torture, respectively. The child's psychological and emotional well-being is significantly affected when single parenthood resulted as a result of family violence and physical fights within the family (Chen & Chan,2016). If this occurs, children experience depression and stress that retard their cognitive development. If the condition is extreme, they are more likely to experience psychological disorders impact their physical well-being compared to children raised in a family with both biological parents available.

The study concluded by highlighting the need for having both biological parents in family structure since they provide essential support and contribution to the cognitive growth and development of the child. It reduces some of the factors that result in victimization, depression, and stress impacting the child's physical and psychological well-being.

Dawson, D. A. (1991). Family structure and children's health and well-being: Data from the 1988 National Health Interview Survey on Child Health. Journal of Marriage and the Family, 573-584. https://www.jstor.org/stable/352734

The study is a credible scholarly journal on family and marriage, examining family structure and health and social well-being children and its impacts and effects on the growth and development of children. The study collected data from 17,110 children aged below 18 years of age living with single parents(Dawson,1991). The family selected was either a single mother or stepfather family by reviewing national data records by using a purposive data design method.

The study established that a high percentage of children living with single parent mothers and stepfathers had low school performance. The children had a repeated grade of schools and frequently expelled out of school, leading to depression and stress, which affected their psychological and physical well-being of the child's growth and development(Dawson,1991). Besides, the study also established most children in single parenthood experience emotional distress leading to the development of behavioral disorders and problem as a result of a lack of social attachment from their biological parent. Parents in single-family lack time to spend with their children as a result of increased responsibilities in the family household.

In conclusion, based on the two research sources analyzed, Yes, the single-parent family structure does affect and impacts a child's psychological and physical well-being as a result of increased exposure to an unhealthy condition such as victimization and depression.

References

Chen, M., & Chan, K. L. (2016). Parental absence, child victimization, and psychological well-being in rural China. Child abuse & neglect, 59, 45-54. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S014521341630148X

Chen, M., & Chan, K. L. (2016). Parental absence, child victimization, and psychological well-being in rural China. Child abuse & neglect, 59, 45-54. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S014521341630148X