The Time and Efforts Invested in Children, Reaction Paper Example

Throughout the readings there is a key focal point that facilitates the understanding and correlation between the construction of families, the amount of time and effort invested in children by family, disciplinary actions, interactions with social interactions and environments. These poignant points show the relationship between patterns in family composition and structural integrity and the deviation of youths from societal acceptable actions. The first focal point is the construction of the families and the perceived epidemic of youths and their activities (Kafka, 2008). Multiple studies that focus on the environment the youths are engaging their activities in which could encapsulate deviant activities. The environment that allows sexual and violent content to be read, practiced or simulated is represented in comic books, music, video games, television and the internet. The scrutiny and reference point comes when the view on the problems for delinquency is viewed. When the family unit, such as the mother or father, is under scrutiny, the child is seen as the reason for the issues and is focally the delinquent. When entertainment or other activities is seen as the problem the youth is seen at risk and is in need of protection by the parental units.

The construction of families has ever evolved from the traditional husband and wife to blended marriages, single parent homes and families constructed of paternal grandparents or other non-traditional family makeup. These family units faced varying issues and required differing levels of effort to provide for the children in these units. The children would then receive reduced interactions from the parental units or family members and could potentially lead to deviant activities. The family members may not have had the time to invest in their children and the discipline could also be lacking considering the amount of time available to mold and shape their children.

The question of what is normal and what is deviant behavior among youths has very distinct interpretations. The issue is when the two areas begin to overlap and the basis on what is right and what is wrong behavior begins to take form of an opinion more than a fact and the interpretation can lead to misplaced discipline and effort. As women were taking on more roles and responsibilities in the social bounds of society, their roles were changing at home and those responsibilities were deviating from the norm. As the social environment changed the parents of the children were taking on more responsibilities outside the home and neglecting the children either purposefully or through ignorance for their own self-fulfillment.

The definition of normality of youths includes those not classified as a deviant. This deviant was categorized by those in either director or implicit authority in the children’s lives whether it were school, church, work or the family unit (Castillo, 2011). These deviants were deemed to return to a normal stasis by encouraging the parent to become firm, kind, structured and understanding of their children thus spending more time with them and providing the attention and framework the children needed to thrive and return or stay in normality.

Normality of a child and the structure of a family may not have a one hundred percent correlation between each other in regard to the level of normalcy and the level of bonded family unit but there is a correlation between the deviant or unwelcomed activities of youths from broken or disheveled home lives. The ability to contribute the subconscious awareness that a child has to endure regarding their potentially less than adequate home life and the level of volatility and assimilation into normalcy has a high degree of interconnectedness.

References

Castillo, J., (2011). A comparative historical analysis of post-war moral panics and the construction of youth from 1938-2010. Scholar Common. University of South Florida. Print.

Durst, A., (2005). Of women, by women, and for women: the day nursery movement in the progressive-era united states. University of Wisconsin-Whitewater. Print.

Kafka, J., (2008). Disciplining youth, disciplining women: motherhood, delinquency, and race in postwar american schooling. American Educational Services. Print.

Kett, J. (2012). The history of family. Mortimer House. Retrieved: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/S1081-602X(03)00042-3.

Sayer, L, Bianchi, S., and Robinson, J., (2004). Are parents investing less in children? Trends in mothers’ and fathers’ time with children. American Journal of Sociology. 110(1). Retrieved: http://www.jstor.org/stable/10.1086/386270.