Question:
What insight do you have on some of the recent problems of violence we are dealing with in our schools?
Answer:
It’s no secret that many of today’s young people face a crisis. In the average school day a child may confront more moral dilemmas than their grandparents experienced in their entire childhood. Society’s social security blanket has been ripped from the arms of our children. Today many children are left only with the fragments of a crumbling nuclear family that traditionally had dad and mom at home. But today with so many children growing up in single-parent families, kids are vulnerable and caring parents are left feeling confused and helpless. Some notable facts are:
- Both caring parents at home provide the most secure setting for children. So fight for your marriage, make it a priority, the welfare of many depend on it.
- If you are already separated, and reconciliation is impossible, maintain a friendly relationship with your former spouse. Both parents need to be extensively involved in their children’s lives.
Fatherless children are at greater risk for:
- Suicide
- Poor grades
- Aggression toward parents
- Lower self esteem
- Sexual activity
- Behavior problems
- Variety of psychological problems
- Daughters of single parent families are more likely to: marry as teenagers by 53%; have premarital births by 164%; and dissolve their own marriages by 93%.
- Raising children today is not for cowards! Fatherhood is probably the hardest job you will ever love. We are dedicated to help strengthen families; call our caring professionals at The Rice - Lewis Clinic for a free telephone consult.
Sources: University of Florida, Fatherwork and the National Center for Fathering, and The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
Answered by: Robert Rice, M.D.
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