Interviewing Parents - Essay Example

Parents Interview al Affiliation Parents Interview Part 1. How old is your child/children? My child is fifteen years old. 2. How is adolescence different from the elementary school years for your child? What changes have you seen in him/her? In her adolescence, a number of changes in comparison with her elementary school days. For instance, she experiences psychological problems, as a result of dating dynamics, that depress and greatly impact on her eating habits; she rarely eats. 3. How has your relationship changed since your child has entered adolescence? Give specific examples of how it has changed. Since my child began adolescence stage, we have been experiencing several conflicts as compared to previous years. For instance, she sometimes gets home late at night and any attempt to question her result in a heated argument. In addition, she has become more rebellious because of the punishment administered to her whenever she makes mistakes. She considers herself mature and independent. 4. What are some boundaries and rules that you have set up for your teen? What do you do if he/she breaks or a rule or disrespects a boundary? My teen is expected to be home on time, in the evenings after school. When out with friends, partying or sporting she must ask for permission before going out and finally she is restricted to materials such as magazines and internet sites that can influence her into early sexual acts and use of drugs. Whenever she goes against the above, for instance go out partying without asking for permission, the rule is she will never go out again for a couple of weeks. In addition, when suggestive content or materials that might influence her into use of drugs or early sex are found in her possession; whether magazines or in her computer, she is restricted to academic internet sites and magazines, no entertainment. 5. Is your teen involved in a romantic relationship? Does he/she go on dates? If so, what do the dates consist of? My teen has a boyfriend but she is not involved in romantic relationship. She sometimes asks for permission to go out on dates in public places. The dates consist of watching movies at a cinema, theatres and sometimes swimming. 6. What is the greatest challenge you face in regard to your relationship with your adolescent? The most challenging bit of our relationship is in situations when she asks for something and she is denied. In such circumstances my child will lock herself inside her room for a couple of hours; she will not talk to anyone for quite some time. 7. What is your child’s feeling toward his/her friendships? Do you think these friendships have a major influence on him/her? If so, please give some examples. She loves the company of her friends. Well, being in control of her everything, her friendships do not influence her; she just loves their company. 8. How has the world changed from the time you were a teen? What are some new challenges your teen will face that you did not? With the fast evolving technology, there are a number of exploitative content or internet materials in display for teens to access. During my teenage days, such materials were restricted from teens. Thus, my teen is likely to face sexual exploitation that is going round in various internet sites. 9. In your opinion, does your child have good or poor self-esteem? Describe how you think your teen perceives him-/herself, and give some examples. My child has a good self-esteem. She has always talked positively about herself, the things she do, her achievements and what she intends to achieve in future. I once bumped into her note book and to I was reading through a number of previous recorded activities, I noticed that she carries herself with confidence. For instance, in a previous class debate which was about, “Should women be treated equally as men in the society?” she stood her ground and defended her point: Women are human beings, with blood, flesh, feelings, emotions; they breathe the same air as men and thus they must be given equal opportunities in the society 10. How do you cope with the anxiety and pressures that come with parenting an adolescent? Every day comes with its own challenges as a parent. To cope with these challenges, I have learnt to accept that adolescence is just a stage that every mature individual once went through and every young individual must go through. As much as I am strict to my child, I keep it at the back of my head that this stage will come to pass. Part 2. 1. Provide a brief description of the person whom you interviewed (e.g., gender, age, family structure, geographic location, religious beliefs and/or any other information that you think is relevant). The parent I interviewed is male of forty three years old. He is married and has three children; first born (male) is twenty four years old, second born (male) is twenty years old and the last born is fifteen years old. His wife is thirty eight years old. This family lives in Washington DC and it has a strong Christianity background; they believe in raising up children in a godly manner. 2. What parental style do you think the parent in the interview has? This parent has an authoritative style of parenting. 3. Is this style consistent, or do you think it changes in response to the child’s behavior? This style is consistent since the parent understands how his children feel and he always teach them how to regulate their feelings. In addition, he assists his children to find appropriate ways to solve problems, encourage them to be independent as much as he still places limits and other controls to their actions. 4. What seems to be the greatest concern this parent has with his/her child? How does this manifest in the parent-child relationship? According to the textbook, is this concern common? The greatest concern of this parent is morality. He always struggles to make sure that his child never access to groups or materials that can divert her attention and change her morality. This concern is common to all parents; every parent wishes to raise his or her parent uprightly (Santrock, 2001). Part 3 1. Which parenting style do you believe is the best and why? Authoritative style of parenting is the best. Parents who use this style always set clear standards for children, monitor every set limit and allow their kids to develop independence. 2. How do you (the parent) balance maintaining a relationship with your adolescent and enforcing the rules of the house? For the parent to achieve this, he or she sets clear boundaries for the children. These boundaries should depict the limit of friendship when the child does the right or wrong thing. For instance, when a child goes against one of the set rules, she or he should know that a parent will never entertain such (Santrock, 2001). 3. How does a Christian Worldview affect the way you parent your adolescent? Christianity, as a religion offer guidance on how to bring up children in an upright manner. Thus, this has enabled me to learn how to morally handle the children. In addition, the seminars and conferences held seasonally for parents play a great role in instilling appropriate parenting standards and knowledge. 4. How would you approach your adolescent if he/she were struggling with a particular issue (e.g., drug use/abuse, crossing dating boundaries, pornography, eating disorders etc.)? Choose one issue, and then provide specific examples of how you would approach this issue as a parent. For a child who is involved in drug abuse, I would engage him or her in an extensive verbal discussion in a warmly way. This discussion would be 90% explaining the effect of drugs, citing examples of people who have been badly affected and even display videos that educate on the effects of drug abuse (Santrock, 2001). 5. How do/would you cope with the anxieties and pressures that come with parenting an adolescent? Provide specific examples. Parents expect children to be obedient and play by the set rules. Thus, when a child goes against these rules, parents get disappointed. To cope with pressure from such, as a parent I would re-state my parental demands with clarity and strictness, administer punishment as a corrective measure in order to ensure that the child is back to the right track. Reference Santrock, J. W. (2001). Adolescence. McGraw-Hill. Read More