ABSTRACT
The
study examined the psychological and social effects of single parenting and its
effects on the adolescent development of self-concept in Nigeria. The study
revealed that single parents/solo parents lack partners to share financial and
child care responsibilities with. The study also unveiled that finance is the
major problems encountered by the majority of single parents. This is because
majority of the single parents find it difficult to meet the basic needs of
their children such as food, clothing, school fees, and other personal needs.
This also accounts for the difficult in maintaining discipline among their
children. The study concluded that majority of single parents are faced with
economic, emotional and social problems which translate into greater risk of
embarking on dangerous behaviours by their children such as drugs, alcohol and
criminal activities.
Although
recent evidence implies linkages among depression or depressive symptoms,
self-esteem, history of childhood abuse, and parenting. Children living in
single family homes have different outlooks on life than children raised in a
home with two parents. The financial stability, psychological effects,
emotional problems, low performance in education all take a toll on childhood
when only one parent provides the attitudes, the evidence does not clearly
elucidate the relationships among these variable.
CHAPTER
ONE
INTRODUCTION
1.1 BACKGROUND TO THE
STUDY
The
rising number of children who now live in single parent has led to considerable
interest in the effects of family structure on adolescent development. Living
with a single parent has been associated with children’s delinquency alcohol
and substance use. Lower self-esteem, psychiatric problems, early initiation of
sexual intercourse and learning school before graduation. A growing number
researches suggest, however, that single parent family may different managing for
African Nigeria.
Single
parenthood can be defined as when one of two parents who are responsible for
the nurturing and child rearing is not available and the responsibilities meant
for two people is now being carried out by one person. (Azuka-Obieke, 2013).
According to the Longman Dictionary of contemporary English (2013), Single
parenting is defined as a situation when a mother or father who looks after his
or her children on their own, without the input of the other partner. Single
parenting has been on the increase, although the actual percentage is unknown,
but practical experience and newspaper reports revealed that there is an
increase of single parenthood in the country.
Recently
the issue of Mrs Augustina Chigozie was reported in vanguard newspaper on 4th
of March 2016, on how she had been coupling as single parent. For instance, in
most ethnic groups in Nigeria, parental and maternal roles are clearly defined
among the Yoruba’s, maternal roles include children rearing, home training and
playing complimentary roles, while that of paternal roles are that of providing
for the family basic necessities and discipline of the children, when any of
the parents are not available to fulfilled their responsibilities it may
affects their children upbringing and may turn the children into wayward and
academics failures. Family is the first primary social group that the child
first belongs to; thus, this group has a greater influence on the child’s
physical, emotional and mental development.
Simply
because the family lays the foundation of education before the child goes to
school and the kind of personality the child will exhibit in the school, to a
greater extent the education attainment of the child is determined by the
family. Both parents have their own roles to play in children education and
moral development, father provides the necessary tools for educational
advancement, while the mother is expected to supplement and compliment the
effort of the father.
In
Nigeria, it is generally believed and clearly seen that the absence of the
father or mother have a particular negative socialization process on a child
which may be detrimental or dangerous for the child in particular and society
at large. It is believed that when both parents are present, it implies that
the child would derive most care, a child from homes where the father and the
mother are present will be well taken care of and socialized in the best way
possible (Ortese, 1998). This is due to the fact that the process of
socialization depends on both parents playing complimentary roles in bringing
up the child
Much
of the research which has found detrimental effects of living with a single
parent has be conducted with middle class peoples on the adolescent development
research has found family structure effects that single parent at home hand a
detrimental impact regardless of their person; cooper, pierce and Tidwell
(1995) also concludes that living in a single-parent or step parent family is a
risk factor for increased doing and alcohol use on the adolescent. Psychosocial
outcomes and family process were compares that the higher marijuana use among
youths living with their single parent and extended family adversely
affects psychosocial development on the adolescent self-concept.
1.2 STATEMENT OF PROBLEM
According
to the World Health Organization Adolescence is the period in human growth and
development that occurs after childhood and before adulthood, from the age of
10 to 19 years. When we consider the global population, adolescents constitute
16% with an absolute number of 1.2 billion. In keeping with the UNICEF’s report
quite 1/2, all adolescents board Asia, significantly in South Asia that is
additional around 340 million than the other region. When we compare the
population of adolescents (10-19 years) with the Indian population, it
represented 21.4 per cent which is one – fifth of the total population. From
the accounted population, nearly 72% of the adolescents live in rural areas.
If
we compare the urban-rural adolescents’ population, it shows that the
population in urban areas declined from 21.9% in 2001 to 19.2% in 2011, while
in rural areas, it remained more or less same. In the dynamic stage of
adolescence, brain development and active interaction with societal and
environmental setup will enhance an individual to mould their capacity to move
forward into adulthood. During this period, adolescents acquire physical,
emotional, cognitive, social and economic resources that are the foundation for
health and well-being in later life.
In this fast-moving world, adolescents expand
the limits beyond their family to include more social networks and a variety of
other social institutions. Besides those familiar institutions (like family)
with which adolescents interact also undergo modifications in response to
adolescents. Besides the social and economic contexts of adolescents’ lives
have undergone dramatic structural changes in the past two decades- e.g.,
Increases in poverty and single-parent families being two notable changes.
1.3 OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY
In line with the objective,
the following specific objective have been formulated;
- to find out ways in
which adolescents self-concept development (age ten and above) are
affected by single parenthood; - to establish the social
and psychological effects single parenthood have on them; and, - to investigate the
causes of single parenthood and ways of reducing effects on social
development.
1.4 RESEARCH QUESTIONS
Having review relevant
literature on this study, the focus still remains on the psychological and
social effects of single parenthood on the adolescent self-concept in our
Nigerian society. To achieve the state objective of the study, the following
research questions were developed to guide the study.
- how does single
parenthood influence adolescent self-concept development? - What are the social and
psychological effects single parenthood have on adolescent self-concept development?
iii.
What are the causes of single
parenthood and ways of reducing effects on self-concept development?
1.5
SIGNIFICANCE OF STUDY
In view of the problems caused by parental separation
and total divorce in the Nigerian society, this study will be of great help to
couples, teachers, adolescents, guidance counsellors and the general society at
large.
By knowing and identifying the causes and effects of single
parenthood with their different implications, the study will highlight the
importance of double parenthood for the sake and welfare of the children and
the family. It will also enable parents to know the right path in which to
train and develop their children. It will help parents know that the social
vices associated with their separation sadden and weakens the society in general.
The study will help adolescents to live a normal life
under the right atmosphere; it will also enable children to seek the help of a
guidance counsellor who would help in identifying their problems and finding a
lasting solution to them. It has been shown (Asher and White 1978) that
children from disrupted families tend to have lowered socio-economic and
educational attainments and higher rates of instability in their marriages.
Like Oguntoye (1987) noted, children may undergo a
great level of personal pains when under single parenthood, they feel hurt,
confused, angry, violent, abandoned, insecure, inferior and other social
problems in relation to their mates in the society. This study will help
teachers know how to help children from single parent homes and understand what
they are going through. To show them love and care, listen to their problems
and be able help them academically to achieve their goal in life. From this
study, parents would learn to live a respectable, peaceful and exemplary
married life.
This
study will assist student, by single-parents by exposing them to many variables
that may contribute to their poor academic performance, and behaviour wise, it
will help in awakening parents to their responsibilities and finish them with
the necessary information in how to influence their children holistic
development social and interpersonal relationship with their parents and peer
group positively. It will also help the facilitators, academic authorities, and
counsellors or psychologist to have board knowledge of the problem of single
parents and its effects on the psychological and social adjustment on the
adolescents to assist them.
1.6
LIMITATIONS OF STUDY
The
study causes on the influence of single parenthood on the psychosocial of
adolescent self-concept, the stud particularly revolves around two selected
government ministry of education the researcher would have loved to carry
out this research in all the ministry in Lagos State, but due to time and
finance the researcher is limited to two ministries.
1.7
DEFINITION OF TERMS
Family:
This is a group of people who are related by blood or marriage and it consists
of father, mother and children.
Adolescent:
This is a period of life between childhood and adulthood. It is the transition
period during which an individual outgrows childhood and develops into
maturity.
Adjustment:
A small change made to something in order to correct or improve it.
Broken
marriage: This is a marriage that ended for one
reason or the other and the husband and wife do not live together any longer
they live separate ways.
Single
parenthood: It is a situation whereby only one of
the parents is involved in the process of bearing and raising a child it could
be either the father or the mother.
Psycho-socio
behaviour: It is how one develops
behaves and reacts in a social environment when they themselves may not be
fully aware of their behaviour.