Child-related family issues and parenting

Those who decide not to have children consider themselves to be child- free. whereas those who do not produce children through no choice of their own May consider themselves childless. 1- deciding to have children 2-adoption 3-teenage pregnancies 4-single-parent households 5-two parent households 6-remaining single

Deciding to have children

Women in America on average are now having 2 children . However rates of fertility differ across racial and ethnic categories. Advances in birth control techniques make it possible for people to decide whether or not they want to have children, how many they wish to have ,and to determine the spacing of their births.

According to sociologist Leslie king and Madonna Meyer many us women spend up to one half of their life attempting to control their productivity.

However ,the desire not have children comes in conflict with our societys pronatalist bias, which assumes that having children is the norm. However some couples experience the condition of infertility. They may choose to become parents by adopting a child.

Adoption
This is a legal process through which the rights and duties of parenting are transferred from a childs legal parents to new parent.

 Matching children who are available for adoption with prospective adoptive parents can be difficult. Some adoptions are by relative of child and others are by infertile couples. In US fewer infants are available for adoption today than in the past because better means of contraception and abortion facility

Teenage Pregnancies
Teenage Pregnancies are a popular topic in media and political discourse, and the united states has the highest rate of teen age pregnancy.

Reasons for teenage pregnancy

Teenagers dont use contraceptives They are from low income family and subordinate racial and ethnic groups Teenagers view pregnancy as a way to gain adult status.

Negative Consequences
Bad health for mother and child Limited opportunity for education and employment. Poverty

Single-Parent Households
In recent years there has been a significance in single parent households due to divorce rate. It can be an emotional and financial burden even for a person with sufficient income and network of family and friends. About 42% of all white children and 68% of African American children will spend their part of their childhood living in single parent households.

Negative Affects
Children from mother only families are more likely than children in two parent family to have poor academic achievements Higher school absentee and dropout rates More drug and alcohol use

Two-Parent Households
This is the idealized type of family all around the world . For families in which a couple truly shapes parenting , children have two primary caregivers. Both mother and father raise their children.

Remaining Single
Some never married people remain single by choice. Reasons include opportunity for a career The availability of sexual parents without marriage. The belief that the single lifestyle is full of excitement

Statistics
Among persons age 15 and over 43.5 % of African American have never married, compared with 33.2 percent Latinos and 24.5 % white Americans never married.