Introduction
A stereotype is defined as a set of simple, rigid and overgeneralized beliefs about the personal characteristics of a group of people. In this paper I will show that the stereotype of single parent in the United States has been stigmatized to the point that while many believed those holding that title to be inferior as a parent, a drain on societies resources, and part of “the problem” in the past, today those views are slowly changing as many choose alternative lifestyles and family dynamics so very different from what society once viewed as the norm.
Measurement
I wanted a glimpse into each participant's homelife growing up to see if they already had a preconceived notion of what life with a single parent was like. Either they had a happy homelife with two attentive parents, they had one attentive parent and one non-attentive parent, they had a single parent, or they were raised by someone other than their parent. I then wanted to know if they were happy with their homelife growing up and if they wanted something similar for their future family. I could then possibly see if they had attentive parents and wanted a similar homelife that things were probably better for them than for those that had non-attentive parents who would then say they wanted a different life for their future family. My big question was the list of stigmas as I was hoping that all participants had heard at least of some of them even if they had attentive parents and good homelives. The rest of the questions were just to receive more background and answers from different individuals who were raised differently and how they saw parenthood and the idea of single parenthood in today’s world.
Data Collection
The survey consisted of eight questions to understand what these individuals had been taught about single parents growing up, and if they could identify some of the stigmas associated with single parenthood in the world today. An additional four questions were used for demographic purposes to show the diversity in the participants. In order to get a diverse group of individuals for the survey, I knowingly sent it to four male and four female participants. I also wanted a wider age range and so I made sure to include individuals from ages 18 to 65 in the sample pool. Education in this instance was very important and so I made sure to include individuals with higher and lower levels of completed education degrees as another factor to consider. After coming up with 8 individuals who fit my criteria of diversity on all levels, I sent out the surveys and waited for the results so that I could analyze their answers for this paper. All research ethics guidelines were followed during the data collection process.
Findings
The survey consisted of eight questions that each of the participants were asked. All eight were asked the exact same questions in the exact same order as part of an online survey. Some questions were as simple as checking a box and others required a written out answer where each participant could elaborate as much or as little as they wanted to.
Question 1: What was your family dynamic growing up? Single parent, Both parents home and attentive, One parent attentive other one there but not as involved, Raised by someone other than my parents. (This was a multiple choice question where they were able to click one option) I had a great mix of answers and so I knew I had picked the right group of people to send the survey to as they all had different stories to tell me. Three participants were raised by two attentive parents, three participants were raised in a home with both parents but only one was attentive and the other one was rarely there. One was raised in a single parent household, and one was raised by someone other than their parents.
Question 2: What is your outlook for your future/current household? (This was a multiple choice question with two options. They could either choose “I want/have a similar dynamic to what I had growing up”, or “I want/have a completely different household.”) Five of the participants chose that they either wanted or had a completely different household than what they had growing up while three participants chose they want/have a similar dynamic to what I had growing up. This led me to believe that those who were raised in a more attentive home most likely wanted a similar home and those who were raised in a less attentive home now were looking for something different for their future family.
Question 3: What were you taught about single parent households growing up? I added a list of stigmas about single parents and I asked if any of them had ever heard these stigmas before. Almost all of them checked the boxes on every stigma I listed. Here are the stigmas listed from the survey.
Mostly women, unmarried, poor, no future.
Personal choice, did not want to get married, career oriented.
Mostly people of color, down on their luck, living on welfare.
Children would grow up to do bad in school and have behavior problems.
Usually a result from divorce, death, or abuse.
Children would grow up to have emotional and relationship problems.
Children would lack a role model growing up.
Most single parents come from low income families.
Every single participant checked the box for number one as that was the most common stigma they had all heard. The next most common stigmas were number 7 and 8 on the list with seven out of the eight participants saying they had heard that stigma and then stigmas three, four, five, and six came in third with six out of eight of the participants hearing about that and three out of the eight participants said they had heard about stigma number 2 before.
Question 4: Do you think kids should be raised in a two parent home? This is where I received some interesting answers. Many elaborated on their yes or no answers by explaining why they chose to answer either yes or no. Some who were raised by two parents but one who was not attentive made sure to point out that they believed that kids needed to have two attentive parents that both needed to be present to make choices for the kids. Another participant who was raised by a single parent pointed out that there was no required number for parents and that kids have more than just parents around them as they also should be raised in communities including grandparents, aunts/uncles, and more. This question provided a very mixed reaction and left the answer somewhere in the middle for this particular sample of participants.
Question 5: What is your definition of family? This question however brought some great answers and did not give me nuclear family vibes at all. I received answers such as: “Any group of people willing to trust, care for, and depend on one another.” to “A collection of people bound together by commitment and love for each other that support each other throughout different stages of life.”
Question 6: Should single people be allowed to become parents? This question was answered yes by all 8 participants. Some of the longer answers included “I don’t believe it is my place to delegate whether a single parent can have kids” to “You shouldn’t need a partner to have a child.”
Question 7: Which Continent do you think has the highest number of single mothers in the world? (This was a multiple choice question with the 4 possible answers being Africa, South America, Russia, and North America.) I wanted to see if my participants were aware that the United States has the most single mothers in the world. Seven out of eight participants chose North America while one chose Africa, and so in my personal opinion I think most of my participants are aware that our country has a larger group of single parents than other countries out there which could also play into the stigmas surrounding single parenthood.
According to a Pew Research Study done in 2019 of 130 different countries and territories, the United States does in fact have the world’s highest rate of kids living with a single parent. With 23% it beats out countries like the UK, Russia, Denmark, France, Kenya, and Ireland who are not too far behind them. (Kramer, 2019)
Question 8: Which minority group do you think has the highest number of single mothers in the United States? (This was another multiple choice question with 5 possible answers being African American, Hispanic, Pacific Islander, Asian American, and Native American.) Here my participants were not as confident as they were with the last question. While four participants selected Hispanics as their answer, three chose African American, and one chose Native American.
13% of the U.S. population is African American and according to the statistics listed in The Marriage and Family Experience Textbook they are less likely to get married, more likely to live in poverty, more likely to be unemployed, and children are highly valued. 19.1% of the U.S population is Hispanic and in the same book by Strong is described as a minority that places a high emphasis on childbearing and child rearing, with a third of all children living with a single parents, and the fastest growing ethnic group in the U.S. Native Americans are 2.9% of the U.S. population and are described to be twice as likely to be unemployed and twice as likely to be below the poverty line. Two-thirds of all children born to Native American mothers are born to unwed mothers making them extremely disadvantaged. (Strong, 2021)
All three of these minorities have a higher rate of single motherhood in the United States because of many other underlying issues and so we easily point them out when asked who we think is at the top of this stigma.
Conclusion
While many people still believe the stigmas surrounding single parenthood and the negative effects it can have on children that are raised in homes lacking two adults, there have been many studies done that show the positive effects as well. Children can thrive in loving homes where they receive attention and care even if there is only one caretaker present. The close-knit familial relationships of larger family groups should not be discounted if they are all present to help raise children together. Grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, and close family friends can be a source of family and community when there is only one parent in the home that needs to go out and work as well. The ideal nuclear family that once was the American dream is now replaced with having people around you that you can count on, care for, and that can be there for each other when you need it.
References
Kramer, S. (2019, December 12). U.S. has world’s highest rate of children living in single-parent households. Pew Research Center.
https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2019/12/12/u-s-children-more-likely-than-children-in-other-countries-to-live-with-just-one-parent/
Strong, B., & Cohen, T. F. (2021). The marriage and family experience: Intimate relationships in a changing society. Cengage.
