Deck 14: C2: Social Influences

Question 1

Describe the differences in parental treatment of firstborn and laterborn children and the differences that are commonly found in the characteristics of firstborns and laterborns.

Answer 1

A good answer will be similar to the following:
Parents tend to treat firstborns differently than laterborns. Parents tend to have higher expectations for firstborns and are both more affectionate and more punitive with them. Firstborns, possibly because of these differences in parental treatment, usually have higher scores on intelligence tests and are more likely to go to college than laterborns. They also are more willing to conform to parents' and adults' requests.
Parents tend to have more realistic expectations and are more relaxed in their discipline with laterborns. Laterborn children are less concerned about pleasing parents and adults but need to get along with older siblings. Laterborns tend to be more popular with their peers and are more innovative.

Question 2

Your friends Mark and Bianca are getting an amicable divorce. They have two sons and they want to do all that they can to provide the best circumstances for the adjustment of their sons. Based on the research on the adjustment to parental divorce, what suggestions would you give Mark and Bianca?

Answer 2

A good answer will be similar to the following:
Fortunately, Mark and Bianca get along and they are concerned about their sons' adjustment to the divorce. Mark and Bianca should:
• explain together to children why they are divorcing and what their children can expect to happen;
• reassure children that they will always love them and will always be their parents; back up these words with actions by remaining involved in their children's lives, despite the increased difficulty of doing so; and
• expect that their children will sometimes be angry or sad about the divorce; encourage chil- dren to discuss these feelings with them.
They should not:
• compete with each other for their children's love and attention; children adjust to divorce
best when they maintain good relationships with both parents;
• take out their anger with each other on their children;
• criticize their ex-spouse in front of the children; or
• ask children to mediate disputes; parents should work out problems without putting the chil- dren in the middle.

Question 3

You and your fiancé want to determine whether you are truly compatible before you get married and so have been discussing your ideas about parenting. Your fiancé tells you that when he was a child, his parents used only one form of discipline-spanking-and because he seemed to turn out all right, that's how he plans to discipline his children. You, however, would prefer not to use physical punishment and, instead, want to rely more on reinforcement, time-out, and reasoning. How would you (1) explain these alternative parenting techniques to your fiancé and (2) tell him some of your concerns about the use of punishment?

Answer 3

A good answer will be similar to the following:
∙ Reinforcement is any action that increases the likelihood of the response that it follows. When parents use reinforcement, they reward the behaviours that they want children to perform more often-behaviours like studying and being polite. Parents may use praise as reinforcement.
∙ Time-out involves having a child who is misbehaving briefly sit alone in a quiet, unstimulating environment. Time-out is punishing because it interrupts the child's ongoing activity and isolates the child from other family members, toys, and other rewarding stimulation. During time-out, both parent and child usually calm down. When time-out is over, the parent should talk to the child and explain why the misbehaviour was not acceptable and what the child should do instead. Reasoning like this is effective because it emphasizes why a child was punished and how punishment can be avoided in the future.
∙Research suggests that punishment is not a very effective way to change children's behaviour. When punishment is used, children are told only what not to do. They don't learn new behaviours to replace those that were punished. Punishment also has some undesirable side effects. Children may become angry and upset when punished and that might interfere with their learning why they were punished. Also, children who are punished physically often imitate that behaviour and become aggressive with siblings and peers. Furthermore, when physical punishment is condoned, there is an increased risk of child abuse.

Question 4

Your sister-in-law recently announced that she is a lesbian, and she is divorcing your brother. Your sister-in-law would like to have custody of their two children, but your brother does not want his children raised by a lesbian. What can you tell your brother about the development of children whose parents are gay or lesbian that might make him feel better about the situation?

Question 5

Your friend Shabrisha is concerned because her seven-year-old daughter and five-year-old son seem to fight constantly. Shabrisha's daughter has always been temperamental and Shabrisha thinks that the fighting may be her fault. Shabrisha remembers being very close to her sister when they were children and she thinks that her own children might be unusual because they fight so much. What can you tell Shabrisha about the factors that are related to harmonious relationships between siblings?

Question 6

You and your spouse want to use a consistent style of parenting in raising your son. Your spouse was raised in an authoritarian home where the children did as they were told without questioning. You were raised in an authoritative home in which your parents had firm rules but they could be flexible about these rules. Based on what you know about the outcomes of children from authoritarian and authoritative homes, which style of parenting would be the best for you and your spouse to choose? Explain your answer.

Question 7

Julie, who is a Canadian of European descent, and Jiang, who lives in China, met while cruising the Pacific and, as they got to know each other, they started comparing their cultures. When they got to the topic of parenting behaviour, what differences between their two cultures would you expect them to discover?

Question 8

You and your spouse have one wonderful daughter and you are trying to decide if you should have another child. On the one hand, you are quite content with your daughter. On the other hand, your spouse is afraid that your daughter will be selfish, spoiled, and self-centered in she is an only child. Based on what you know about only children, what would you tell your spouse?

Question 9

Name and briefly describe the five different styles of grandparenting.

Question 10

List some common traits associated with firstborn, laterborn, and only children.

Question 11

Describe (1) social/cultural, (2) parental, and (3) child factors that contribute to child abuse.

Question 12

Name and describe Baumrind's four parenting styles.