Single parents often have limited financial resources and social supports. For households headed by single mothers, the median income is only 40% of the income of two-parent families and for single fathers it is only 60% of the income of two parent families. Thus the frequency of children living in poverty is three to five times higher in single-parent families. These parents must also rely to a greater extent on other adults for child care. Although these adults may be sources of support for the single parent, they also may criticize the parent, decreasing confidence in parenting skills. Fatigue associated with working and raising a child may also make consistent parenting difficult. Single parents are likely to have less time for a social life or other activities, which may increase their isolation. When the increased burdens of being a single parent are associated with exhaustion, isolation, and depression, developmental and behavioral problems in the child are more likely.
When the parent is a teenage mother, problems of parenting may be exacerbated further (see Section 12). Being a teenage parent is associated with lower educational attainment, lower paying jobs without much opportunity for autonomy or advancement, and lower self-esteem. They are even less likely than other single mothers to have any support from the child’s father. Children of adolescent mothers are at high risk for cognitive delays, behavioral problems, and difficulties in school. Referral to early intervention services or Head Start programs is important in these situations.
When a single parent has good social supports, is able to collaborate well with other care providers, and has sufficient financial resources, he or she is likely to be successful in raising a child. Pediatricians can improve parental confidence through education about child development and behavior and validation of parenting behaviors. Empathetic understanding of the difficulties of being a single parent can have a healing effect or help a parent discuss difficulties that may suggest the need for a referral to other professionals.
Children Living with Homosexual Parents
Many children with a gay or lesbian parent were conceived in the context of a heterosexual relationship. Some parents were unaware of their homosexuality at the time that they married, whereas others may view themselves as bisexual or marry despite the recognition that they are homosexual. Gay men and lesbian women also become parents on their own or in the context of an already established relationship with a same-sex partner through adoption, insemination, or surrogacy. Children living with homosexual parents may encompass many possible family structures.
Parents in these families are likely to have concerns about how disclosure of the homosexuality and the associated social stigma will affect the child. In general earlier disclosure of a parent’s homosexuality to children, especially before adolescence, is associated with better acceptance. Most children of homosexual parents experience some social stigma associated with having a gay or lesbian parent; this may occur in the form of teasing by peers, disapproval from adults, and stress or isolation related to keeping the parent’s homosexuality a secret.
Evidence suggests that having a homosexual parent does not cause increased problems in the parent-child relationship or the child’s social-emotional development. Gender and gender role behaviors are typical for the child’s age. Nonetheless distress related to teasing or maintaining the parent’s secret may be great for some children, especially in early adolescence when issues of peer acceptance, sexual identity, and separation from one’s parents are especially strong.
Adoption is a legal and social process that provides full family membership to a child not born to the adoptive parents. Approximately 2% of children in the United States are adopted. A significant proportion of legal and informal adoptions are by stepparents or relatives of the child. Most adoptions in the United States involve U.S. parents adopting U.S. children, but shifting cultural trends have increased the diversity in the ways in which adoptions occur (e.g., international adoptions, single-parent adoptions, privately arranged adoptions, and the use of a surrogate parent). These types of adoption each raise unique issues for families and health care providers. Open adoptions in which the biologic parents and birth parents agree to interact are occurring with increased frequency and create new issues for the adoption triad (biologic parent, adoptive parent, and child).