The Benefits of Single Parenting vs Two Parents - Essay Example

The parents tend to bring their ego in petty matters and argue with each other. This makes the environment in the family not only uncomfortable for the child but also for the parents. A single parent does not have to go through all this. He/she is independent in his/her decisions and there is no one to challenge them. “When I call out, "Bedtime," there's no one to say, "Aw, let them stay up another half hour."” (Mohler, 2011). Accordingly, the parent enjoys complete right over the child. Stronger Bond with the Child A child’s bond with a single parent is usually stronger than it usually is with either of the two parents when he/she has both. Single parents are often the role models for their children. Children grow up imitating the attitudes, activities and ideology of the single parent. “A single parent is also more readily available to observe changes in the child's behavior and attitudes, as well as getting to know the peer group the child chooses to surround her/him” (Squidoo, 2011). Having both parents, children tend to be careless towards their parents. They know if the mother scolds, they can side with the father and when the father is outrageous, they can seek refuge in the mother’s lap. But having a single parent means no escape whatever the parent says or does. There is nobody the child can look up to for any kind of help but the single parent. Over the time, such a bonding between the single parent and the child proves very beneficial for the parent. Many children escort their old parents to the old houses when they grow up and get married themselves. Children think that the couple would take care of each other’s needs. But a child would think a thousand times before doing this to a single parent considering he/she has been the child’s only guardian all life long and must be taken special care of now that he/she is old. The life-long struggle of the single parent pays off in the end in a vast majority of the cases while the opposite is true for the dual parents. Development of Solid Child Identity Single parenting develops a solid identity in the child. Single parent is like an open book. The child reads the book and does accordingly. Children who grow up under the supervision of dual parents have the tendency to become confused because of the conflicting views, beliefs and opinions of the two parents. Let’s take a case for example in which the two parents belong to different religions. The father is a Christian and the mother is a Hindu. The father goes to the Church while the mother goes to the Temple. The father eats beef burgers while the mother worships the cow. The father does not worship the idols while the mother does. All of this is very confusing for the child. Parents are supposedly the role models for the children. When the two role models display different and often conflicting characteristics, the child becomes confused and is not able to work out which of the two is correct and which is not. Such marriages have frequently inculcated such a culture in the home, wherein the child starts believing in both the religions. The mixture of the two religions gives rise to a third religion that has extremely subjective foundations and whose beliefs and perceptions are entirely challengeable. The child having multiple beliefs himself is very confused. On one occasion, he worships the cow and on another, he eats it. This ...Show more