It is suggested, by psychologist Ross .D. Parke that fathers make their primary contribution to their children’s development through play. The majority of time a child and father spend, is through play rather than through caretaking (Yarrow et al. 1984; cited in Lamb & Lewis, 2004). In a study of Boston families, fathers spent nearly 40% f their playing with their children in comparison with mothers who spent 25% of their time playing with their children. Parke states that mothers and fathers have different styles of play as fathers tend to be more tactile and less verbal, whereas mothers tend to play more distal, attention stimulating games. Parke proposes that studies indicate that infant appear to respond more positively to playing with their fathers than compared to their mothers. If it is suggested that fathers make the ideal playmate, then surely the absence of a father will effect the development of a child.
There are studies that have actually contradicted this view and this is evident in lesbian mother families. These studies have suggested that it is not the absence of a father that will effect a child’s development; however it is the fact there is an absence of a second parent that truly affects a child. There is a body of research evidence, spanning over 20 years, on the developmental outcomes of children of lesbian parents. With regard to lesbian parenting, studies of children of lesbian mothers have revealed no significant differences between children of heterosexual mothers. Therefore there are no differences between children from heterosexual families and lesbian mother families in areas such as gender development, self-esteem and well being ad social development. As the results of existing research comparing children from lesbian mother families to children from heterosexual parents, stereotypes are not supported by this data. The existing evidence that sexual orientation of parents does not appear to determine the success of a Childs development and neither does the presence of a father appear to be crucial for normal development. Recent evidence suggests that lesbian couples who are parenting together tend to divide household and family labour relatively evenly (Hand, 1991; Patterson, 1995a) and to report satisfaction with their couple relationships (Koepke, Hare, & Moran, 1992; Patterson, 1995a). Therefore it is the presence of having two parents, whether same sex or not that is beneficial to the development of the child.
With lesbian mother families, there is clearly an absence of a father however there are still two parents that bring up the child. It is crucial to look at the evidence on the effects of children’s development from single mother families to view the absence of a father and the absence of a second parent. Children living in mother-only families almost inevitably experience financial challenges as a result of father absence. This is due to the fact that single mothers struggle to maintain consistent child support and parenting relations with non-residential fathers. It is evident from research provided that children from single mother families often suffer from poor academic performance, lower educational attainment, and early pregnancy, which is often due to the loss of income that is associated with the absence of the father from the household. McLoyd (1990) argues that single mother families experience a decrease in their standard of living not only because the loss of the fathers income but also because the new primary wage-earner is more likely to face the gender and racial discrimination reflected in the underemployment and unemployment of women. Being a single parent has many effects on children’s development which is supported by Dunn et al.’s study on four year olds and their siblings. These children were reported to have higher levels of psychological disorder than children from two parent families. Researchers have viewed the effects of having only parent and have suggested that this can produce poorer quality of parenting those children from the traditional nuclear family.
There is a substantial amount of research that suggests the importance of having a father and the contributions that they make to a child’s development. If fathers are more actively involved in child care by 40% or more, their children show more internal locus of control, more cognitive competence and more empathy than preschool children with less involved fathers (Lamb et al., 1987; Pleck, 1997). When fathers are more involved with their adolescents’, these adolescents have positive outcomes such as self control, self esteem and social competence, provided that the father is not an authoritarian, violent or overly controlling (Mosley & Thomson, 1995; Pleck & Masciadrelli, 2003). It is essential that there should be new studies incorporating longitudinal, multi-method, and predictive designs which are needed so that they can illuminate the effects of father presence and absence over the course of children's lives. Also greater balance should be struck in research on ethnic fathers. Research suggests that not only do children benefit from the involvement of a father, a mother does too. When fathers share housework and child care with their wives, employed mothers escape total responsibility for family work, mothers view this division of labour as fair and they enjoy higher levels of marital satisfaction (Brennan et al., 2001; Coltrane, 2000; Deutsch, 1999). With all these factors taken into consideration, other research contrasts to this view that fathers matter in the development of children. The research on lesbian mother families suggests that children are from these families are as psychologically and mentally well balanced compared to children from traditional families. It is the absence of the parent, not necessarily the father that produces negative effects on the mother and on child’s development. As is true in any area of research, questions have been raised with regard to sampling issues, statistical power, and other technical matters (e.g., Belcastro, Gramlich, Nicholson, Price, & Wilson, 1993). Other criticisms, with regards to lesbian mother families are that most studies have involved relatively small samples and theses studies involve certain types of limitations. These limitations include the fact that subjects were generally English speaking, middle class and voluntary participants, with findings that were conducted either in the United States or in the United Kingdom.
There is evidence for and against the fathers’ role in the development of a child; however I believe that this role is very significant. I find that both mothers and fathers contribute differently to the development of a child and have difference styles in teaching, playing and in general child care. I believe these differences are essential and provide a child with the right balance whilst growing up.
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REFERENCES:
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R.D. Hess and K.A. Camara (1979). Post-Divorce Family Relationships as Mediating Factors in the Consequences of Divorce for Children. Journal of Social Issues, Volume 35, Number 4.
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Parke, R. D. (1996). Fatherhood. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press. Pp. 61-72
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Golombok, S. (2004). Solo mothers: Quality of parenting and child development. International Congress Series, 1266, 256-263. Abstract received Feb 02, 2005, from ScienceDirect database.
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Herriot, P. and McGurk, H. (1978) Issues in childhood social development, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
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Richards, M. and Light, P. (1986) Children of social worlds, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
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Kingston University Lecture notes on module title: Childrens Relationships PS3198: lecture on the family.
