Perception Of Single Mothers: A Single Parenthood In Modern Society

I was amazed by the large number of essays on single mothers lives. Understanding the uniqueness and relevance of this problem inspired me to write my own essay. Single motherhood has now become the new normal due to the increase of children being born outside of marriage, which the trend has been expanding since the late 1960s. The likelihood of a child spending part of their childhood in an unmarried household is increasing.

Single Mothers in the United States

Out of all the single-parent families in the United States, single mothers make up the majority (Single Mother Guide).

A single mother’s income is way below a married mother’s income, and the gap between the two groups is significant (Single Mother Guide). Over the decades it has been shown that children of single mothers have more family distress, and conflict and live at a lower socioeconomic status compared to those who grow up in two-parent households. Society’s perception of single mothers differs from dual-parent households due to dissimilarities regarding financial hardships, and discipline.

Get quality help now

WriterBelle

Verified writer

Proficient in: Parenting Styles

4.7 (657)

“ Really polite, and a great writer! Task done as described and better, responded to all my questions promptly too! ”

+84 relevant experts are online

Hire writer

Any financial burdens rest on the shoulders of single mothers (Murray). In many cases, single mothers do not qualify for public assistance due to their household size . Many single mothers are classified as the “working poor” because the jobs that they have don’t provide many benefits and offer little opportunity for advancement; thus making them fall below the poverty line.

Statistics show that the median family income for single mothers that have never been married in 2011 was barely over the poverty line. In contrast to that, only about ten percent of children raised in dual-parent households live below the poverty line.

Disciplining as a single parent is stressful because they are the sole disciplinarian, so it can be hard for them to create a balanced relationship with the child. It can be especially complicated if the child has behavioral issues. Unlike in dual-parent homes disciplining the child is shared between two parents. Even though there are two parents in the household, there is always one parent that typically tends to do more of the discipline; like single mothers. Whether or not a child uses their free time constructively depends on the discipline but it does not matter if the child has one or two parents living in the home (Department of Health & Human Services).

Conclusion

In conclusion, although single mothers and dual-parent households create loving environments; single mothers have a variety of factors that can be beneficial or unfavorable. They both can have the same struggles but experience them differently. Comparable to dual-parent households single mothers do have more of a disadvantage due to them being the only parent raising the child.