IMPACT OF RUNNING SEPARATE HOME BY MARRIED COUPLES ON WIFE AND CHILDREN
CHAPTER TWO
LITERATUREREVIEW
- Introduction
This section comprises of a review of the literature relevant to the study topic and in line with the specific objectives. The literature scrutinized the causes of married couples running separate home, the consequences and the possible solutions to married couples running separate home; it also looked at the theoretical and conceptual framework of the study.
2.2 The quality of parenting and parent-child relationships
Parenting behaviour and the quality of the parent-child relationship play a critical role in understanding children’s well-being in relation to family change. The quality of parenting is one of the best predictors of children’s well-being both in intact families as well as lone parent and stepfamilies (Amato, 2005; Dunn, 2005). Yet the evidence shows that the quality of parenting and of parent-child relationships often diminishes with separation and stepfamily formation, and that this disruption can precede separation (Emery 1982; 1994; Hetherington 1989, 1993; Simons et al., 1996 all cited in Pryor and Rodgers, 2001). This is reflected in a lack of warmth and support, less involvement, harsher discipline, and inconsistency. The quality of parenting and parent-child relationships reflects the impact of other stressors such as parental conflict, maternal mental health and socio-economic disadvantage (Pryor and Rodgers, 2001).
The quality of parenting and of the relationship with the non-resident parent, usually the father, is also associated with children’s well-being, and is more significant than contact in itself: ‘The mere presence of fathers is not enough… To the extent that men remain involved in parenting after separation, or assume parenting practices they have not done before, they have a positive influence. As in intact families, the most effective way they can parent is by providing authoritative parenting… It is these aspects of parenting, encompassing monitoring, encouragement, love and warmth, that are consistently linked with …well-being’ (Pryor and Rodgers, 2001). It should be recognised, however, that it is often not easy for separated fathers to establish family life and good parental relationships with their children after family breakdown, because of issues such as unsuitable housing, lack of funds, or contact restricted to meetings in public places (Bainham et al, 2003)
Just as parental conflict, maternal mental health and socio-economic factors can disrupt parenting and parent-child relationships, children’s behaviour can also play a part, so that children who are temperamentally difficult, distressed or badly behaved, can influence the quality of parenting and relationships (Pryor and Rodgers, 2001). Likewise, the quality of the relationship with parents preceding family breakdown is likely to influence the nature of relationships following separation and married couples running separate home (Smith, 2004c).
So long as the parental relationship remains relatively conflict-free, children generally report a wish to maintain a relationship with both parents (Wade and Smart, 2002). However, there is a tendency for contact with non-resident parents to decline over time, and there are some debates concerning the impact on child well-being of ‘absent’ fathers. It has been hypothesised that lone parenthood reduces the time and attention that is available for children (Amato, 1993) and that boys in particular suffer from the lack of a male role models and are therefore more likely to develop behaviour problems (Simons et al, 1999 cited in Mackay, 2005). On the other hand, evidence from a number of sources, particularly studies of bereaved children, step-families and of the impact of contact arrangements, indicates that problems attributed to ‘absent father’ syndrome may have only a weak association or cannot be proven. First, children who experience loss through bereavement fare better than children whose parents separate. It has been suggested that various social factors might account for this difference, including the better financial and occupational status of widows compared with lone mothers (Biblarz and Gottainer, 2000 cited in Mackay 2005). It is also possible that the emotional context of loss is qualitatively different and is not therefore a valid source of comparison. Secondly, some fathers manage to maintain good relationships with their children. Evidence suggests that managing to sustain a ‘normal’ parental role, rather than over-focusing on special activities and ‘treats’ is important for the quality of the relationship (Simons, 1996). Research that takes young children’s perspectives into account found that there is a robust relationship between children’s views of contact, and their perception of the quality of the relationship with their fathers (Smith, 2004c).
2.3 Maternal mental health
Persistent and unresolved parental conflict is likely to have a negative impact on maternal mental health, often leading to depression, a consequent drain on the emotional resources required to parent adequately and lower levels of tolerance for ‘problem’ behaviour in children. Financial hardship can also function as an exacerbating factor, contributing to high levels of stress which independently impacts negatively on mental health.
Depression is the most common mental health problem in the population generally, with higher rates reported among women and people on low incomes. The rate of depression is particularly high among mothers in low income families with young children, and in lone mothers (Brown and Harris, 1978; Brown and Moran, 1997). There is evidence that maternal depression is both a risk factor for separation or married couples running separate home (Aseltine and Kessler, 1993; Bifulco and Moran, 1998) and a consequence of family breakdown. High rates of current and past depression, for example, have been reported among mothers in step-families compared with other family forms (Smith, 2004a). Family breakdown often precipitates a period of acute stress, and the quality of parenting is likely to be disrupted during this period, resulting in lower levels of affectionate behaviour, poorer communication and more erratic discipline (Hetherington et al 1982 cited in Rodgers and Pryor, 1998; and Mackay, 2005). Some evidence suggests that family breakdown has a more negative effect on women’s mental health than men’s (Block et al, 1988 cited in Mackay 2005), but that where maternal mental health remains relatively robust children are more protected from the effects of family breakdown (Kalter et al, 1989 cited in Mackay, 2005). The evidence suggests that the mental health status of the mother is more predictive of child outcomes than family structure (Smith, 2004a).
Overall, the evidence indicates that children who have a parent with mental health problems are at an increased risk of emotional and social problems, although not all children are affected. For example, in a sample of children of psychiatric patients a substantial proportion (one third) remained unaffected, and a similar proportion experienced only temporary psychological problems (Rutter and Quinton, 1984). Outcomes are poorest when children are the object of parental aggression and neglect (Rutter, 1966) or harsh or ineffective discipline (Berg-Nielsen et al, 2002), and recent research indicates that serious injury is more common among the children of depressed mothers (Smith, 2004a).
2.4 Socio-economic factors
Family breakdown and the resulting lone parent status (usually mothers) often lead to financial hardship (Rodgers and Pryor, 2001). Shouls et al (1999) have highlighted that approximately 70 per cent of lone parents live in poverty, and other research has demonstrated that single parents are more likely to alternate between employment (often unskilled) and dependence on welfare benefits (Evans, Harkness and Ortiz, 2004). The relationship between poverty and child outcomes is well established: children from poorer backgrounds generally do less well on a number of measures, such as health and educational attainment, than children from more advantaged backgrounds. It has therefore been suggested that poverty may be a significant factor in explaining negative child outcomes rather than family breakdown per se (Burghes, 1994 cited in Rodger and Pryor, 2001). When income is controlled for, the negative impact of parental separation is significantly reduced (Carlson and Corcoran, 2001 cited in Mackay, 2005) or disappears entirely (Blum et al, 1988 cited in Mackay 2005). Others have argued that not all differences can be attributed to socio-economic factors (Elliott and Richards, 1991; Kiernan, 1997; Kuh and Maclean, 1990).
Poverty and the resultant stress not only affects mental and physical health (Smith, 2004b), but can be both a consequence and a cause of family breakdown. Among parents from lower socio-economic backgrounds the married couples running separate home rate is higher (Rodgers and Pryor, 1998). Although poverty may directly contribute to negative child outcomes following parental separation, it is more likely to be the stress resulting from poverty that disrupts the quality of parenting and parent-child relationships, and which in turn impacts negatively on child outcomes. Studies of two parent families in America who suffered a severe drop in income showed that the economic pressure led to increased depression in both mothers and fathers and increased marital conflict, which resulted in increased hostility to children, more coercive parenting and disrupted family relationships, negatively affecting children’s well-being and behaviour (Conger et al., 1992).
2.5 Repeated changes in family structures
Evidence indicates that, in the majority of cases, family breakdown is followed by a period of lone parenthood and subsequent re-partnering. Indeed, step-families have been described as the fastest growing family type (Ferri and Smith, 2003). It has been argued that repeated changes in family structure are more likely to produce negative outcomes in children (Dunn et al., 1998). However, it is less clear whether negative outcomes are associated with repeated changes in family structure per se or with factors associated with transitions in family forms. Roberts (2002), for example, argues that children in stable lone parent households fare better than children who move through different family contexts, and that stability is therefore an important variable in explaining child outcomes. Repeated transitions in family structure are associated with parallel changes in living circumstances, parental employment, schools and fluctuations in income (Smith, 2004c). These latter factors independently contribute to adverse outcomes for children.
Indeed, evidence indicates that family breakdown is likely to be transmitted intergenerationally (Amato and Keith 1991; Mueller and Pope 1997; Amato and DeBoer, 2001; Teachman, 2002) to the extent that the children of married couples running separate homed parents are estimated to be twice as likely as children of non-married couples running separate homed parents, to experience married couples running separate home themselves (Amato and DeBoer, 2001). This has been explained by children of married couples running separate homed parents tending to leave home and form partnerships and enter parenthood at an early age. It is argued that young couples are less likely to have developed the emotional maturity to sustain an enduring partnership and tend to experience greater financial hardship and less social support (Mueller and Pope, 1997) - both factors that enhance the risk of family breakdown.
2.6 TheoreticalFramework
This section deals with the theory that informed the study. The study was informed by the Social Exchange Theory as explained below.
Social ExchangeTheory
This study was guided by the Social Exchange Theory which points out that human beings will create and maintain relationships if they believe that rewards they derive from such relationships will exceed costs. Homans (1961) attempted to explain behavior as an outcome of interaction in which individuals’ trade or exchange resources broadly defined. Although Homans derived his statements of modern exchange theory from behavioral psychology and micro-economics analogous theories, the ideas are also found in anthropology (Levi- Strauss, 1949; Mauss, 1954) and political science (Elster, 1986). While Social Exchange Theory best explains interactions between two persons, the theory has also been extended to integrate group processes, and applied to dyadic behaviors, such as friendship and marriage (Hatfield et al., 1979; Waller, 1937).
The five basic propositions of modern exchange theory were formally stated by Homans (1961). First, is that people are more likely to engage in a given activity if it has been rewarded in the past. Second, the more often you do things that reward another person for a given behavior, the more often the other will emit the activity. Third, if you do things that reward another person for a given behavior, that person will engage in that behavior more often if the reward that you give them is more valuable to them. Forth, the more often someone does things that reward you, the less valuable those rewards become for you in the future and fifth, we are likely to become angry if we seem to be treated unfairly.
The behaviorists’ model of operant conditioning is based on the utilitarian principle that individuals will seek to maximize their pleasure and to avoid or minimize their pain.
Individuals are expected to respond in predictable ways to rewards and punishments. Each interaction is an opportunity to exchange resources from which each participant attempts to receive resources of higher value than he or she has contributed orforegone.
Generally speaking, social psychologists refer to things exchanged as resources and resources can be anything tangible or intangible. Foa and Foa (1974) have identified six classes of exchange resources: love, status, information, money, goods and services. They further state that any resources falling into one of these six classes can be described with respect to one of two dimensions: particularism and concreteness. The particularism of resources is the extent to which its value depends on the particular person involved in the exchange. For example, an exchange of affection holds more value to a loved one than to a total stranger, while an exchange of money holds a more universal value. Concreteness refers to the degree to which the resource is tangible such as a raise in salary as opposed to an increase in one’s occupational status. Additionally, Foa and Foa (1974) found that particularistic resources tend to be exchanged for resources in the same class, for example, love for love rather than love for money but those less particularistic resources
are commonly exchanged for resources in different classes. For example, money is often exchanged for goods and services.