Prof. Dan. Only

Ivy Bucsa

SOC-320

June 28, 2015

David Claerbaut

Policy and discourse on family responsibilities revolve around obligations and rights of parenting. The purpose of this paper is to present a discussion on responsibilities of spouses so that they attain a work-life balance. It is possible to transmit physical, mental, and moral qualities from parent to child. The burden of responsibility for the moral character of a wayward child rolls back from one generation to another. Parents have the responsibility of retaining the thread of sensuality bequeathed by earthly ancestors.[this sentence is not really clear] For many adults, marriage constitutes a central interpersonal relationship that engages a person. Shared and flexible performance of household tasks associated with mutual commitment and diffusion of responsibility. High attraction and stability in solidary marriages presumes to provide a basis of security for spouses. High marital satisfaction and satisfaction with their spouses helping behavior report low levels of stress and physical wellness. [Ivy, you are using a lot of large words and it actually makes this less clear. Make it simple and clear.]

Spouses in personal and interpersonal relationships confront with conflict situations. Conflict in marriage institution arises due to child rearing differences, religious differences, sex relations, household chores, social activities, and interests. The repercussion of spousal conflicts is that they may an effect n their children, relatives, or even the society. A conflict situation can weaken a spousal relationship leading to separation or divorce. By the law of recurrence, it is possible to transmit qualities from grandparents to the grandchildren (De Lange, 2013). Some of the aspects of conflicts include aggression, hatred, fighting, or bitterness. All can admit that lamentable amount of domestic discontent and positive unhappiness grows out of the fact that the spouses have different ideas concerning a perfect marriage.

In the past, policies that focused on children and families operated on the assumption that families were synonymous with mothers. In the modern day, fathers’ role is crucial in the contribution of child development. The government supports and encourages father involvement. Fathers are potentially relevant to the discussion of parenting cultures. Fatherhood irrespective of the degree of involvement cares for their children and other parental roles effectively. It is the duty of both fathers and mothers to provide smooth, steady, and evident love to all children without showing any partiality. Parents should provide useful love during high and low moments of the day. Fathers according to Magne[omit] Bakke (2006) are psychological role models for their children, provide an economic resource for the family and play an active role in the care of the children. A mother is in charge of all domestic work in her household whether she is working or a single mother. A mother that stays at home is the primary carer for the children.

For the couples to sustain a continual healthy relationship, spouses should learn to adopt the best conflict resolution strategies to resolve different aspects of conflicts that challenge the union. Conflict resolution strategies vary between males and females. While males have links with withdrawal, confrontation, and aggression, females have links with compromise and peaceful methods. For that reason, to avert conflicts, females adopt solution-oriented strategies as males apply control variables. Females seek support from their colleagues due to their extensive exposure and for that reason use supportive, interactive style. Males use restrictive and controlling strategies. Families that face conflict situations according to De Lange (2013) should seek the help of marital therapists that will assist them to adopt appropriate resolution strategies. The therapists can take a holistic assessment to assist spouses resolve conflicts in the relationship. Spouses in conflict situations can visit pre-marital counseling sessions. Counselors can engage in marital campaigns to sensitize spouses to adopt effective conflict resolution strategies in their marriage relationships. De Lange (2013) say that present day parents have access to plenty of information and counsel to make families healthy and homes happier to live. Families can improve their home skills when they seek professional help. Family agencies in the community can broaden the knowledge of parents concerning parenthood. A family can provide a buffer, strength, and safety to address unfamiliar or hostile communities.

Child rearing has different variations from one parent to another since it has limited effect in terms of modifying personality or intelligence. Holden (2010) explains that child rearing is a multidimensional and multi-activity endeavor. Effective parenting involves many roles and functions such as feeding, clothing and protecting the children. Parents can stimulate, educate, and discipline their children as they develop. Parental guidance has a profound effect on how a child develops and functions as an adult. Parental nurturance plays a crucial role in children’s development.

Most people regard child rearing as a time-consuming and demanding activity to engage in. Holden (2010) asserts that most people do not plan their pregnancies. Unwanted children are at risk for different problems. As an infant comes into existence, it alters the entire lives and habits of the parents. The arrival of an infant represents fundamental changes for parents. It is expensive to having and rearing a child. A child introduces difficulties on the mother especially where she works. A child creates worry and tension as well as the introduction of negative effects to one’s health and stamina. Newborns require constant care and feeding after few hours. One should stimulate them every time lest they cry. New partners report a decline in marital satisfaction.

Parents can guide their children development through the establishment of trajectories, mediating trajectories, and modifying the trajectories. In the establishment of trajectories, parents will determine the direction that children development will take. In mediating trajectories, parents will exert a powerful influence on how children perceive and react to the environment. Parents can alter the speed of experiences to promote their development. Parents can determine how children develop through selecting environments that children are exposed to so that they can influence the direction of personal development. Parental establishment of trajectories implies setting or defining the borders of a child development. Objects that surround an environment can serve as possible trajectories for a child. The establishment of trajectories can be either conscious or unconscious. As a child grows, the provision of experiences becomes intentional. By the time a child joins kindergarten, parents can engage in promotion strategies to foster a child’s talent. Parents guide their children towards pathways by direct instruction. One of the preventive strategies adopted by parents is to homeschool a child to buffer them from negative influences in the school system. It is the duty of the parents to curb children from negative influences.

In their role as parents of a newborn, they perform various mundane tasks that include feeding, clothing, stimulating, comforting, and diapering. Mothers play a key role during paternal development. Mothers involve themselves in child-care skills such as changing diapers. Sensitivity parenting requires the caregiver to attune to the child’s cues and make the appropriate responses. Parenthood depicts a major life change as well as long-term financial commitment where many individuals find themselves on that road without much forethought.

In the upbringing of children, the church says the following, (i) it is the responsibility of parents to rear children in accordance with Christian ideals, [Ivy, this is a violation of the GCU plagiarism guidelines. It is almost an exact match from an outside source without a citation. Besides, we do not use any direct quotes in this class.](ii) provide a moral foundation for the children, and (iii) control their social lives and lead them to a comprehensive life of piety. In the classical period, children resemble the imperfect raw material that need to transform to something noble through means of upbringing and instruction. From a tender age, a child needs to learn what is a virtue to having a right moral formation. The church regards a moral formation as a vital element in the children education. The goal of education should lead children towards moral excellence and happiness. Knowledge and skills that students gain prepare them for a life consistent with standard virtues of moral philosophy. A man as the head of the family has the primary responsibility for education in the classical household. The New Testament indicates that parents have an obligation to bring up their children in the Christian religion. Biblical text supports the debt theory that argues that children are in debt to their parents and that they repay them with their care that they owe them. Exodus 20:12 Honor thy father and thy mother applies in the church to prevent rebellious children from escaping parents authority. Children should obey their parents other than strive for independence and autonomy. Leviticus 19:3 is an obligation for young children to submit to parental authority.

References

De Lange, F. (2013). "Honor thy father and thy mother" - what do grow children owe their aged parents?. Dutch Reformed Theological Journal / Nederduitse Gereformeerde Teologiese Tydskrif, 126.

Holden, G. W. (2010). Parenting: A dynamic perspective. Los Angeles: SAGE.

Magne Bakke, O. (2006). Upbringing of Children in the Early Church. Studia Theologica, 60(2), 145-163.

Wijckmans, B., & Van Bavel, J. (2013). Divorce and Adult Children's Perceptions of Family Obligations. Journal Of Comparative Family Studies, 44(3), 291-310.

Ivy, you have a start but this needs some work. Be sure you go over the comments above. If you do that and follow the steps I give you it will be much better. First, you want to use subheadings in bold and separate spousal and parenting. Start with spousal and treat it as if there are no children. Make sure you have some research there. Then you go to parenting and you need research there. Then you go the rest of the way. Write it more simply and clearly. Work on writing correctly. Every source in the reference section must be cited above to count. Finally, there is a violation of the GCU plagiarism guidelines above. Be sure you resolve that. I am going to assume it was an oversight so I will not deduct many points this time. And remember, we do not use any direct quotes in this class. I will grade this outside the rubrics this time. Do these things and you will do better.