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The Biggest Disadvantage Of Single Parenting
from: Karlie BestlerThere are many disadvantages to single parenting, but they can almost be summed up into one big disadvantage. The biggest disadvantage of single parenting is the lack of adequate support systems. The simple truth is that raising a child does indeed take a village. A village of parents, grandparents, relatives, neighbors, daycare workers, medical professionals, teachers and social workers all play vital roles in the raising of a child. Without the necessary support systems to raise a child, the families suffer.
Most people think the biggest disadvantage of single parenting is money. Many of the social programs that the U.S. government has are aimed to increase monies to single parents either through workfare programs or educational grants. They believe that money will buy all these resources for the single parent, but that is not the case.
Money will buy resources, but the resourses must be available to buy at an affordable price in the first place. The resourses must also be managed and overseen, which is a process that takes incredible amounts of time with poor support systems requiring more effort. The community the single parent lives in will determine what support systems are available to the single parent. For instance, if there is a high demand for daycare, a single parent may find herself having to work a job that barely covers the cost of childcare, leaving little for the rest of the needs of the child.
Having a good support systems tends to offset the other disadvantages of single parenting. When you are married, there are two people to locate and manage the resources for the child. There are usually two incomes and often duplicate family and community support systems. One can generally act as a backup if the other fails. However, without that backup, the life of a single parent can be a constant juggling act of time and resourses.
A single parent may be able to juggle fine when things are going well, but when a child falls sick or begins to struggle in school, it becomes evident that the child needs the resources of the community. The single parent will have to chauffer the child to the needed support systems, oversee the intended care, manage the finances for the care, usually while trying to maintain a 40 hour a week job. This can quickly become exhausting, and this is why many children of single parent households score lower on assessments of health, education and behavioral problems. These children do not have the same support systems that married parents have built in.
Thus, the biggest disadvantage of single parenting is the need for adequate support systems to be available, of good quality and at low cost. The single parent also needs more time to manage these support systems. If a child is having trouble in school, they need an advocate for them and that usually is a parent. Some of these roles can't be filled by others, like daycare. If a family support system is missing too, there usually is no emergency backup in times of illness. Should the parent fall ill, it becomes an impossible situation that even money won't relieve.
As a society, we need to start addressing some of the issues of poor quality or high-cost support systems for raising our children. As the demographics continue to shift to more single parent families, we need to start designing communities with better support systems to raise the next generation of children.
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