• Week Four By: Stojanna, Chris,

Cherrelle, and Rebekah

Managing Risk and Opportunity

• SHIFT IN COMMUNITY'S VIEW OF PARENTING FROM COMMUNITY BASED TO INDIVIDUALISTIC

• VARIES BETWEEN AND WITHIN COMMUNITIES OBSERVABLE THROUGH NUMEROUS VARIABLES

RESOURCES, SOCIAL TRUST, SOCIAL NETWORKS, OPPORTUNITIES FOR YOUTH

Types of Communities

ANOMIC IMPOVERISHED RESOURCES, LOW SOCIAL TRUST,

RESTRICTED SOCIAL NETWORKS, LOW SOCIAL TRUST, LOW INSTITUTIONAL/FAMILY CONNECTEDNESS, LIMITED OPPORTUNITIES FOR ADOLESCENCE

TRANSITIONAL DECLINING RESOURCES, SELECTIVE SOCIAL TRUST,

LIMITED SOCIAL NETWORKS

COHESIVE RICH RESOURCES, HIGH SOCIAL TRUST, EXTENSIVE

SOCIAL NETWORKS, LARGE ROLE FOR MEN, GREATER OPPORTUNITIES FOR ADOLESCENCE

Anomic Communities

“Lock-up” strategy

Prevents inter-family bonding

Insulate children from dangers of neighborhood

Low social integration

Not knowing names of neighbors

Individualistic style of family management

Criticizing social institutions

Anomic Communities

Negative comparison Pointing out negative behavior of neighbors Message to children is they are different from other

families in community Lowers ability of parent to monitor children outside of

home

Seek resources outside of community Schools, health care, programs, part-time jobs,

TRANSITIONAL COMMUNITIES

Declining social institutions and social customs Loss of middle class, rising unemployment,

withdrawal of government funding Loss of belief in schools Few delegate responsibility authority to formal

institutions Geographic mobility Demoralization and apathy of some neighbors

“they” not “we” View people who move in as 'outsiders'

Cohesive Communities

Ample supply of adults who assume responsibility for others' children

Locals operate businesses, staff community institutions, and always in eye sight of youth

Large role for males

Lots of opportunities for 'sponsorship'

Discussion Questions

How can we build trust with the parents in the communities we serve so that they allow their children to participate in our programs? How do we reassure them of their child’s safety?

Do you think close supervision and monitoring encourages the youth to be more sneaky or behave better?

How can you spread the message of community cohesiveness to families who are scarred of losing their children to 'the streets'?

Successful Parenting in High- Risk Neighborhoods

Environment- Impoverished inner-city

neighborhood

Possible Youth Outcomes:

High school dropouts

Premature parents

Welfare recipients

Drug dealers

Drug Users

Violence perpetrators violence victims

Parent Involvement- Parenting Strategies:

Youth Monitoring

Resource Seeking

In-Home Learning

Optimal Neighborhood Conditions:

Good quality schools

Youth programs

Libraries

Parks and organizations w/ developmental contexts for

youth.

Possible Youth Outcomes:

High school graduate

College graduate

Employment

Comm

unity bridging

Parenting Strategies • Youth Monitoring- supervising time, space and friendships (i.e. intensive supervision,

chaperonage, and exile)Pros- youth are away from negative people and situations.Cons- may damage parental and youth relationship. Youth may become sneaky to gain freedom. Inhibit youth’s self-sufficiency and maturity. No trust is built

between parents and youth.• Resource Seeking- community resources that will benefit the youth overall development (i.e.

afterschool enrichment programs, scholarships, job training programs, and kinship connections)

Pros-Exposure to new opportunities, building a stronger support system, increase educational performance and social interactions.Cons- could become the parents goal and not the child's and possible over

scheduling with program commitments. • In-Home Learning- Developing youth academic skills and competencies in the home

environment. Supportive learning strategies.Pros- strong foundation of skills and character development established,

relationship building between parents and youth, and emotional support (encouragement).

Cons- lack of social interaction with others and not all parents are able to provide academic assistance,.

What is a Super-Parent?“ Inner-city neighborhoods with limited social, economic, and institutional resources

demand that parents be “super-parents” to ensure conventional development for their adolescents.”

Personal Sacrifice• Parents feeling overwhelmed, competitive, or inadequate

Stressed mental instability- depression and anxietyWhen 'Super Mom' is super sad: Pressures haunt new parents

Tip: Take advantage of local government and school district programs in which early childhood educators or social workers perform home visits to offer advice and reassurance. "When people are feeling incompetent as parents, they don't necessarily need medication or somebody focusing on their mental health," Wendel-Hummell said. "They need somebody saying, 'You're doing a good job. You are a good parent.'"

http://www.today.com/parents/when-super-mom-super-sad-pressures-haunt-new-parents-1D80081732

Take away- Despite deprived conditions (poverty, high crime, poor school system), youth in inner-city neighborhoods can still be on the track of success with attentive, persistence, and resourceful parents who sacrifice their personal needs to foster positive development.

Question- Jarrett’s article “Successful Parenting in High-Risk Neighborhoods” gives strategies (monitoring, resource-seeking, in-home learning) for parents when raising youth in low poverty communities. Which strategy is the most challenging for the parents of your youth to achieve? Which one of them do you think is the most effective with youth in your program or your neighborhood?

Children do not come with Manuals on how the raise

them.

• Trial and error (what is effective vs. ineffective)

• Study research and theories on youth development

• Seek assistance

- There is no such thing as a one stop shop.

(need to seek out resources)

- “Need to negotiate the world outside the

household” Furstenberg.

•

Examining Parent’s Time

Mentors(Resource outside the home)

• There is no such thing as a one stop shop.Parents need help!

• Match process-Helps to have similar interest

• Mentors can motivate children/youth in the right direction

• Sometimes children/youth have to hear the same thing from someone else.

• My own experience/study of mentorsSchool Improvement board Mentors & career paths

Parenting Styles• Study by Diana Baumrind • 2 dimensions studied (Warmth/Acceptance & Control)• Research suggest that Authoritative is the most

effective.

Question: Given different family dynamic and culture do you think Authoritative parenting style is most effective? Why or why not?

Family Processes & theories• Baumrind-parenting styles• Bronfenbrenner’s ecological theory• Bradley and Caldwell-Basic functions performed by

parentsThe “five S’s” (socioemotional support, structure,

stimulation, safety/sustenance, surveillance).

Questions

How can we as youth development professionals stop the street life from being readily accessible?  

Is it really ok to use the “ANY MEANS” approach to youth development or is there a line to be drawn or a framework of “ANY?” 

What are some sacrifices that you see parents make for their children’s success?

•Exposure to Negative Forms•Linked with Children’s aggressiveness, emotional distress, and risk for adjustment problems

•The type of conflict to which children are exposed matters to both their immediate functioning and their long-term adjustment

Marital Conflict in Home

Destructive Conflict Tactics

• Physical aggression toward the partner and objects• Personal insult• Defensiveness• Verbal hostility• Withdrawals • Children are present in the majority of domestic

violence incidents, even though parents may think that they shelter their children from these events

Constructive Conflict Tactics

• Calm Discussion • Apology• Compromise• Verbal and Physical Affection• Support

Method • Participants

– 47 Married couples with at least one child • 21 boys, 26 girls (between ages 8 and 16 years of age

– Median Family incomes $40,000 to $65,000• 87% parents were college educated

• Measures– Marital Daily Record (MDR)

• Notable Features – Parents extensively trained– Fathers and mothers complete MDRs– Actions during martial conflict are distinguished– Emotional responding as well as conflict tactics are recorded for each

episode

Procedure

• Both parents completed MDR at home for 15 days – Two laboratory visits (schedule 3-4 weeks apart)

• “Interactions”• Video Clips

Results• 34% of the Fathers’ and 37% of the mothers’ reports involved

conflicts that took place when children were present. • Fathers and mothers, respectively, reported that more conflicts

occurred in children’s absence.• Husbands were more disposed toward destructive marital conflict

tactics during interparental conflicts taking place in front of children. – Ex: physical distress, aggression against objects, personal insult, verbal

hostility)• Wives were more prone to destructive conflict tactics

– Personal insult verbal hostility defensiveness– Less likely to engage in constructive conflict tactics

• Wives were less likely to make threatening comments when children were present versus absent

• Despite the emotional, mental, or physical disparities that parents undergo they must realize that children see and hear more than they give them credit for. Parents must always be cognitive of handling situations in a proper manner and understanding that marriage is about compromise.

• Waiting for the children to go to bed or waiting for each other to calm down are all ways to avoid arguments with the child being present.

• As parents and youth development leaders we must remember that conflict in the present of our youth will and can affect them short-term and long-term.

• As YDLs, how can we be sure the boundary between youth and adult is never crossed? It is easy to take advantage of poor families. Once one good deed is done for them, some begin to expect it and rely on it on a regular basis. Should this be our goal? We may be making their life temporarily easy, but are we helping them in the long run to become sustainable families?

• How do we as youth professionals promote the community bridging of all the youth within the community? In other words, how do we assist those parents in breaking the cycle of low socio-economic standing if we have individuals within the community (ie Malone) who are not concerned about the community as whole, but rather a select few?

• Why do you believe there has been an influx in the amount of community leaders engaging in criminal behavior?