West Indian Family Challenges Essay, Research Paper
The household has been defined as a societal group characterized by common abode, economic cooperation and reproduction. It includes members of opposite sexes, at least two of whom maintain a socially approved sexual relationship, and one or more kids, owned or adopted, of the sexually co-habiting grownups ( George Murdock, n.d ) . The modern-day West Indian household differs significantly from Murdocks definition, and it is controversial to happen an exact significance of the West Indian household. Even thought the atomic household type explained by Murdock exists in the West Indies, there is besides in being the extended household and the matrifocal household. The drawn-out household comprises of a grouping broader than the atomic household, which is related by descent, matrimony or acceptance and includes members such as grandparents, aunts and cousins. The matrifocal household is the most prevailing household type when mentioning to the West Indies ; it is a individual parent household and in this household puting the function of the male parent is inconsequential and the female parent is the dominant figure. But nevertheless the composing or construction, the modern-day West Indian household faces many challenges, some of these challenges are industrialisation, Westernization, instruction and societal mobility, individual parenting, deficiency of spiritual values and divorce.
The West Indies is chiefly Third universe states seeking to develop to criterions of other states classified as First World, and to accomplish this they have sought to industrialise particularly the larger states such as Trinidad, Guyana and Jamaica. With industrialisation there is a interrupting up of the traditional drawn-out household. This is seen particularly in Jamaica, where there is a motion off from the rural countries to urban scenes. In these urban scenes the organisation of the household is affected, both its construction from a traditional household to a scene that is seregrated. This is mostly due to insanitary conditions, cramped lodging and poorness ( Basil, 1953 ) . Poverty in it self is difficult on the modern-day West Indian household, without income or occupations the household is greatly challenged, parents have to happen agencies to garner money for the household but at the same clip can pretermit the emotional demands of their kids.
Industrialization and urbanisation has besides affected the Caribbean adult female. In anterior the adult female was economically dependent on the adult male and relied on the establishment of matrimony
or other connubial relationships. With industrialisation the adult female has been able to get economic independency and this has affected the household. Economic independency drew attending off from the importance of puting up a household as the chief intent of her being and in fact the household and family scene as the cardinal point of her being ( Basil, 1953 ) .
Through the nature of their colonisation Caribbean peoples have ever have been exposed to western civilization, ( Mohammed, 1986 ) , and in the modern-day West Indian household this Westernization has taken the signifier telecasting, music and educational patterns. Television particularly has become a high influence on kids, and the major challenge that telecasting brings it has taken away some of the socialisation influence of the household. Much of the clip that should be spent in household activities that could represent togetherness is being lost to the telecasting. Carter ( 2000 ) remarks on this, he sees that many parents now rely on the telecasting to make full a important part of the clip every bit good as the existent socialization experiences, which were once, the preserve of the household.
Education although indispensable to the advancement of the household and to the development of society can besides be described as being slightly of a challenge to the West Indian household. Many younger household members attain an instruction and at times are the lone individuals in that household that might hold an instruction and the contemplations of those individuals and other members of the household may come into struggle. This is owing to the consequence that increasing degrees of instruction and cognition now mean that intellectually and psychologically, kids have a much greater resource base on which to dispute the value place of their parental coevals, ( Carter, 2000 ) . Many of the beliefs and values that the household held are now set aside by the more educated household member who holds on to their freshly procured cognition and this can do struggle in the household and concept a barrier in household communicating.
Single parenting is the dominant challenge confronting modern-day West Indian households. Single rearing both by adult females and work forces. The latter find it a challenge to equilibrate work agendas with family jobs, ( Saul, 2000 ) Women are, placed under enormous force per unit area as they try to beguile different undertakings all at one time. They have to equilibrate work, family responsibilities, their societal life, emotional feelings and attention for their kids all at one time. Single parenting has a great consequence on kids, as kids need to be brought up by both parents psychologically and financially. Psychologically, individual parenting has a grater consequence on male childs than miss in households that lack a male parent. Boys in father absent places are more likely than male childs from male parent present places to meet troubles in societal, emotional and cognitive development ( Conger.et.al, 1984 ) . With no dominant male figure in which to place with, and to sometimes Rebel against over protective female parents, these male childs are more likely to prosecute in delinquent activities.
Lack of spiritual values challenges the household, in anterior times the church inoculated obeisance, love and regard for all members of the household ( Matthews, 1953 ) . Through its system of belief it cultivated a sense of household coherence. In the modern-day West Indies there has been an hegira of individuals from the church, promoting a decomposition of values and a deficiency of household integrity. The church was the foundation that held the household together and without it, there has been household eroding. The figure of divorces now happening in the Caribbean can visualise this.
Divorce is a major challenge that affects the household, particularly the atomic household in the West Indies and throughout the universe. Divorce is a defined as a legal disintegration of a valid matrimony. Divorce terminates the societal and legal contract of matrimony and consequences in the household interrupting up. It comes approximately because of several grounds, some of these grounds are conflict withi
n the place, maltreatment, age and sex differences, communicating jobs, spiritual jobs, fornication, disregard and when the twosome s perceptual experience of love has disappeared. It normally begins with soldierly struggle before the existent separation and includes a multiple of life alterations afterwards ( Pallari, 1998 ) . Divorce is a really intense alteration to the household and it effects the members of the household, both partners and kids, socially, psychologically and economically and besides influences household operation.
Socially, with the hegira from either partner from the place the hubby or married woman experiences non merely separation from their partner but besides separation from an full societal support web. This web that once comprised of friends, particularly friends of that hubby or married woman that they have divorced, and besides the household of that partner is finally altered and the grass widow feels more entirely. Divorce as Carter ( 1994 ) recognized can besides ensue in a loss of societal position.
Economically, the married woman is at hazard particularly if there are kids involved. This is seen more intently where in the matrimony the married woman was financially dependent on the hubby and was non working, where every bit good educated adult females are better to get by with the effects of divorce ( Kornblum & A ; Julian, 1995 ) , because of the handiness of occupations that are unfastened to them. Pallari ( 1998 ) sees that 85 per centum of the clip the married woman obtains detention of the kid and they have to acquire by with half of old income that she were acquiring before she was married. Divorced female parents may be pushed into poorness and dependance on the province for public assistance aid as most hubbies do non go on to back up their households after divorce, although they are frequently lawfully required to pay child support. ( Kornblum & A ; Julian, 1995, Carter, 1994 ) .
Psychologically, both hubby and married woman are effected by divorce. Although there might hold been conflict predating the divorce, it is seen that they undergo feelings of separation hurt, which so increase to feelings of intense solitariness as individuals long for the security of the household that they are accustomed to. Weiss ( 1990 ) identified three ways that divorce psychologically impacts the grownups involved. These ways are duty overload, where the 1 who has detention of the kids has to supply financially and emotionally to the household and be the important figure to the kids. Task overload, is where the parent can non run into the demand that is needed for unforeseen activities that may originate, as they are preoccupied with working, rearing and upkeeping the family. The 3rd psychological impact that Weiss identified is emotional overload, where the parent must give emotional support to his or her child forgetful of how they themselves feel emotionally.
The effects of divorce on the alienated married woman are farther assenuated by the brand up of the household that is sing the divorce. This make-up that is chiefly atomic in construction and the increasing denationalization of household which has taken topographic point now means that a
larger proportion of divorced adult females now have to manage the emotional and fiscal effects of divorce without the support of relations ( Carter, 1994 ) .
The effects on kids are ruinous, kids may see divorce as the terminal of their lives as they know it ( Kornblum & A ; Julian, 1995 ) . Often the kids blame themselves, particularly the younger kids, for lending to their parents divorce. This is a consequence that younger kids are more dependent than the older kids and the older 1s are able to hold an apprehension of why they parents have divorced. They recognize that strong differences of sentiment, incompatible personalities and deficiency of caring for one another are responsible ( Berk, 2000 ) but normally are angry at how the divorce will impact their hereafter. But no affair how it is handled, kids of divorce undergo psychological maladjustment. Kornblum & A ; Julian ( 1995 ) brings us to the attending that kids whose parents are divorce are twice every bit likely to necessitate professional aid for an emotional, mental, behavioural or larning job than a kid who comes from a unafraid household. Children normally show symptoms of choler and aggressive behaviour at school, and their academic public presentation may endure. Children of divorce besides show high rates of unhappiness, low self-pride and depression. Berk ( 2000 ) sees that the older kids because of deficiency of supervising may get away into delinquent behaviour, trauncy, running off and early sexual activity.
Reding and intercession nevertheless can battle the effects of divorce by forces in society ; one such force is the societal work profession. The primary functions that the societal worker can execute in beef uping households of divorce are the functions of enabler and of pedagogue. Divorce in many cases is good instead than bad to the household, particularly in opprobrious households, although there is resistance to it in the society. In covering with grownups, societal workers can advocate them on how to set to individual life so that they do non see periods of solitariness or depression.
The societal worker can advocate the twosomes that they should maintain communicating unfastened so that jobs can be eradicated, hence their kids will non have any bad effects of the divorce. The societal workers can allow the parties involved see particularly in opprobrious scenes that a divorce may be a positive measure that may finally ensue in greater personal contentment and healthier psychological operation ( Morris & A ; Maisto, 1998 ) .
In covering with kids of divorce, the societal worker should allow parents cognize that effectual parenting is needed so that it can screen the kids from struggle in the household and off from delinquent activities. Mothers can learn female parents that contact with male parents is still of import to impact overall wellbeing. ( Berk, 2000 ) of kids. They should allow the female parent and male parent know to keep true to trial rights so that this contact can happen. They can besides demo parents that they should set aside their differences and back up each other particularly in issues related to their kids.
Children should be made cognizant that they are non the cause for their parents dissolution ; and the parents themselves should be made cognizant that they have the duty to explicate to explicate to their kids and to reassure them that divorce doesn T mean that the parents no longer love them.
