Families in Society: Diversity and Dynamics

Definition of Family

• Western Family Type: Nuclear family (parents and dependent children); deviations are judged.
• Non-Western Family Type: Children may lead households effectively and happily.
• Children's Perspective: Love, care, and support define a family more than genetic ties.

Family Practices

• Importance lies in what families do, not what they are.
• Families create and reproduce themselves through interactions and activities.

Family as a Social System

• Reciprocal relationships: Parents influence children, and children influence parents.
• Family systems are complex; members impact each other directly and indirectly.

Diversity in Families

• Common-Law Families: Increasing, often stepfamilies.
• Blended Families: Many couples choose not to remarry.
• LGBTQ+ Representation: 1 in 250 couples includes at least one transgender or nonbinary person.
• Functioning of Families: Adoptive/stepfamilies slightly lower functioning; gay/lesbian parents show no significant differences in children's development.
• Cultural Examples: Mennonite families enforce strict gender roles and shorter childhoods.

Modern Family Roles

• Mothers: Primarily caregivers but increasingly working outside the home.
• Fathers: More involved in childcare; secondary caregivers but still primary providers.
• Grandparents: Longer lifespans allow greater childcare contributions.
• Siblings: Close proximity influences sibling dynamics positively or negatively.

Parenting Styles and Effects

• Authoritative: Clear expectations, reasoning, nurturance. Effects: Independent, achievement-oriented, socially responsible children.
• Authoritarian: Coercive discipline, low nurturance. Effects: Anxiety, poor communication, and aggression (boys) or dependency (girls).
• Permissive: Few demands or limits, high nurturance. Effects: Low self-control and reliance.
• Uninvolved/Dismissive: No limits or warmth. Effects: Antisocial behavior, trust issues, poor relationships.
• Ethnic/SES Influence: Authoritarian parenting more common in non-Western, non-white, and lower-SES families.

Children's Experiences in Families

• Desire for love, care, and support.
• Only 1/3 of children feel included in family decision-making; discrepancies between children and adults on the importance of listening to children.
• UNCRC Article 12 (children's right to voice) not well implemented at home.

Control and Punishment

• Parents control children's time and spaces, with consequences for disobedience (e.g., grounding, loss of privileges, corporal punishment).
• Corporal punishment is still legal in Canada, but most children oppose it.

COVID-19 Impact on Families

• Pandemic significantly altered parenting practices in Canada and globally.

Compulsory Formal Schooling

• Historical Context: Began 3,000–4,000 years ago, initially for wealthy boys. Universal schooling is a modern concept.
• Purpose: To instill moral, mental, and physical discipline and socialize children into functioning adults.

Canadian Educational System

• Curriculum heavily focused on standardized testing.
• Homeschooling increased during the pandemic, especially for grades 1-2.
• Reasons: dissatisfaction with school, curriculum, religious preference, or alternative due to trauma.
• Effects: Mixed outcomes; some studies show better performance, others show lower academic and job outcomes.

Compulsory Schooling in Developing Countries

• Focus on transitioning children from work to universal education.
• Gender and class inequalities remain barriers to equitable education access.

Power, Control, and Discipline in Schools

• Residential Schools in Canada: Assimilated Indigenous children through force. Effects: lasting generational trauma.
• Statistics: Only 63% of First Nations youth graduate high school compared to 91% of non-Indigenous youth; On-reserve graduation rates are much lower.
• Control in Schools: Space, body, and time influence students' experience.

Differences and Exclusion

• Not all children experience school equally. Examples: Roma children, Indigenous children, Mennonites, gender-based violence.
• Standardized tests may not be valid assessments of potential.

Peers, Friends, and Bullying

• Peers: Social equals; peer contact increases with age.
• Friends: Close, loyal relationships often cited as a reason children enjoy school.
• Bullying: Harmful acts with power imbalance, peaking during high school transition.
• Bully-victims face higher risks.
• Inequalities outside school influence victimization.

Agency at School

• Children resist control through subtle acts but often face consequences.
• Finnish schools exemplify "thick" agency by listening to children's voices.
• Thin agency is limited by gender norms, poverty, and societal expectations.

Recess and Outdoor Education

• Opportunities for unstructured play and connection with peers.
• Outdoor education and integrating Indigenous knowledge are growing trends.

COVID-19's Impact on Education

• Effects: Learning shortfalls, mental health challenges, reduced bullying during closures.
• Experts emphasize reopening schools and addressing the mental health of students and staff.

Leisure and Play

• Friendships become increasingly significant during childhood.

Play and Leisure Activities

• Leisure activities are often influenced by peers but remain monitored by parents.
• Leisure: Unpaid, meaningful activities like hobbies, travel, or sports.
• Play: Spontaneous, carefree, and enjoyable; essential to child development.

Evolutionary Importance of Play

• Universal; fosters brain development.
• Releases hormones.

Westernized Views on Play

• Seen as a tool for development and future competence.
• Adults often limit free play opportunities to reduce risks.

Fears Surrounding Play

• Fear of decline in play in children.
• Decrease in free outdoor play.
• Safety concerns limiting outdoor play.

Organized Play

• Plays is prepared to prepare children for adulthood.
• Emphasizes “educational” or "improving" activities.
• Statistics of participation are higher in urban areas, and higher-income families.
• Differences exist in types of activities across genders.

Exclusion in Play

• Children from lower-income families may have limited access.
• Marginalized groups may also have limited access.

Children's Right to Play

• Article 31: Children have the right to play, leisure, and participation in cultural activities.
• Society often restricts these rights by prioritizing safety, structured activities, or media use over free play.

Potential Solutions

• Promote outdoor play in safe environments
• Empower children to make their own choices

Lecture 9: Children at Work

• Western cultures view childhood through developmental theory, emphasizing protection and innocence.
• Contrasting terms exist like child work (light, informal) and child labor (exploitative).
• Child labor is prevalent in Africa and Asia/Pacific regions.
• Child labor is often driven by poverty, parental encouragement, or agriculture/migrant work.
• Child labor implications for Westernized families include separation due to financial strain and unsafe conditions, hidden and undervalued unseen work.
• Often driven by a need to help support the family.

Lecture 10: Children and Health

• Health is both socially constructed and bio-medical.
• Topics covered in this lecture include, disability, obesity, mental health, suicidality, and death.
• Potential strategies to address child labor include fair wages, safer conditions, and recognizing children's agency.
• Implications for Western families: Separation of families due to financial or unsafe conditions and unseen work.

History of Institutionalized Child Healthcare

• First children's hospital opened in 1855.
• Aimed to address poor living conditions and societal issues.
• Promoted investment in children by developing spaces and improving their lives.
• Discourse focused on fixing children and society by shaping their futures.

Children's Agency in Health

• Children demonstrate competence and agency in understanding illness and death.
• Actively socialize themselves in their roles.

Disability: Three Models

• Medical/Rehabilitation Model: Disability as a personal issue requiring medical intervention.
• Social Model: Disability arising from societal barriers.
• Integrated Model: Combines perspectives to examine the interaction between individual and environment.

Disability and Class Intersectionality

• Children from higher SES families may have faster diagnoses, treatment, and support.
• Lower SES correlates with more barriers, discrimination, and slower access to care.

Western Epidemics and Cross-Cultural Differences

• Epidemic #1: Obesity – rising prevalence. Causes include: increased TV ads of unhealthy food to children, social disadvantages, and lack of social support.
• Epidemic #2: ADHD: varying diagnoses and treatments globally.
• Mental Health issues, suicide rates.
• 2SLGBTQ+ youth and disability are at higher risk for poorer mental health outcomes.

Social Support

• Social support from family or friends enhances mental health.
• Increased social support correlates with better health outcomes.
• Over 55% of men with consistent social support report excellent or very good mental health.