Introduction
Parent employment status impacts the relationship with adolescents in one way or another. Employed parents have less time for their children while unemployed parents have enough time to spend with their adolescent children. Employment status affects a lot of things in the family. Some of the issues that are affected by the employment state of the parents include education, lifestyle, motivation, meeting daily needs, and building social confidence. First, adolescent education is dependent on the parent’s ability to meet the needs and wants of the edification process. Many parents who find difficulties meeting some of these needs have their children drop out of the schooling system before they get through it. In addition, a good life is tied to the financial status of the family. Therefore, activities connected to children’s safety and development fall on the shoulders of the parent. Parents take the role of the provider. Therefore, they must ensure that their young ones live and grow in the right manner by providing the necessary items that they require. This research seeks to answer the question: Does parental employment status impact the relationship with adolescents?
Literature Review
The relationship between a parent and a child goes through stages. As a child grows, he or she is able to bond with the parents and close relatives. The bondage depends on the presence of the parents in a child’s life. For parents who are unable to provide everything for their children, their children tend to move far from bondage as they grow old. On the other hand, those parents that meet all the needs of their children, experience a very good relationship with their kids. There are many theories that tend to explain the relationship between parents and a child. An adolescent is described as a person between the age of thirteen years and eighteen years old. Teenagers experience emotional and mood changes due to the development and growth happening in their bodies (Zepf, Ullrich, & Seel, 2016). Thus, parents should ensure that their presence is felt in this life by offering guidance and advice in their time of need. First, Sigmund Freud came up with a theory of child development known as the psychosexual development theory. Therefore, a teenager of a child’s behavior is determined by psychosexual energy. The first stage is the oral stage which takes place between birth and the first year. This is where a child’s interaction is mainly focused around the mouth. This means that the child uses his or her mouth for tasting and sucking milk. Thus, the mouth is very important and helps the child acquire gratification and express feelings to the parent.
The anal stage is the next phase in the child’s development. It takes place between the first year and the third year in the life of the young one. The libido is involved in controlling and ensuring that bowel and bladder movements gain normality. A parent will therefore train the child on how to use some of the facilities within the homestead. A toilet is one of the facilities that a child is taught how to use it. Those parents who encourage and applaud their children for using the toilet or any other facility for purposes of anal activities, experience positive outcomes. Children will be at ease using these facilities and perfect the art as time goes on (Walborn, 2014). The third phase is the phallic stage where a child realizes that his genitals belong to either female or male gender. Therefore, the Oedipus complex comes into play when a child wants to be the mother or possess the characteristic of her mother. A boy on the other hand would like to be like his father. Therefore, they will take after and behave like their father.
The next stage is the Latent period. This takes place between six years and puberty when the sexual feelings in a child develop. The ego and superego feelings also intensify and the child starts having peer relationships (Freud & Brill, 2014). The energy in this exploration phase is channeled to productive activities such as social interaction and education success. The last stage is the genital stage which is from puberty to death. At this point, a teenager has grown up and is ready to engage in an intimate relationship. This is where parental guidance and advice is needed. The reason behind this is that individuals or young people make decisions that are not well thought about. Therefore, they regret at a later date for having taken a certain direction. Building trust in children is important for parents as they are able to offer support when needed (Storlie, 2015). This is because a close relationship affects the manner in which a young person will disclose information to the parent. If a healthy relationship exists then, a child feels at ease sharing personal issues. Contrary, a weak relationship will lead to mistrust between the parents and the kid who is not yet old enough to make a sound judgment.
Erik Erikson on the other hand developed an eight-stage theory that discusses the development of a person. Five out of eight stages happen during childhood as outlined below. The first stage is trust vs. mistrust. Below the age of two years, a child looks up to the caregiver for help. If the caregiver shows compassion and love, then, the child will trust them. On the contrary, a harsh environment will lead to mistrust. A child will not be able to trust their peers and parents in the event they mistreat them. The second stage is autonomy vs. shame and doubt. At this stage, a child is getting familiar with the basic functions such as going to the toilet. This stage involves children between the ages of two to three years old. Autonomy is achieved through motivation and support for the development of a child (Sacco, 2013). Contrary, shave, and doubt comes into play if a child feels uncomfortable and uneasy in carrying out essential functions. This may be attributed to the punishment of the child whenever they error. Thus, the conduct and parents’ reaction toward the child affects the way they handle and control normal functions. The next stage is initiative vs. guilt.
Between ages 3 and 5, a kid tends to focus on the exploration of new things and activities. They will therefore make mistakes or endanger their lives through exploration. If support is provided at this stage, a child has the zeal to invent new ways of doing things. When dismissal and failure intensifies, an individual feels guilty and unable to work out new methods of doing things. In the industry vs. inferiority stage, children face challenges that require innovation and creativity. An active child is able to make his or her way through these challenges and emerge victorious. Failure brings about shame and feelings of inferiority for those who encounter it. This age incorporates students in the early years of school between six and eleven years. Lastly, we have identity vs. role confusion that happens during teenage life (Lewis & Sargeant, 2009). Both the parent and the child face some challenges that lead to the realization of identity or role confusion for the kid. Parental guidance is extremely essential at this stage as teenagers require support and help in realizing and unlocking their potential.
From the above studies, parental relationships and care for their teenagers are affected by a number of factors. These factors may include financial status, support and encouragement, and motivation. The financial status of a family is determined by the employment state of the parents. From the research above, it is true that the employment status of the parents affects the relationship between teenagers and their caregivers. This is because teenager’s behavioral change depends on parental guidance and support. In addition, teenage life is such that they go through a lot of changes in their body and challenges in their social life. Most of the challenges that they face require a financial solution. The solution will therefore come from the parent who is either financially capable of meeting the needs or unable to cater to the need due to the unemployment state. For that teenage who access everything that they need, their relationship is characterized by obedience and closeness. The teenage is also happy that their guardians are able to make ends meet despite offering psychological and social support. At the same time, they motivate the kids to work hard in life and become successful (Lewis, 2014). On the other side, unemployed parents are unable to financially cater to all the teenage needs/expenses. Thus, teenagers from such families are unhappy and end up performing poorly in school and in other areas due to unmet needs. They will therefore blame the parent for failure an action that affects the relationship. Most youths will develop behaviors such as resentful, disobedient, and dishonest (Ermisch & Francesconi, 2012). These characteristics distance a teenager from the parent. In order to meet their needs and overcome challenges, these teenagers seek alternative means that include extreme measures such as crime.
Hypothesis
Parental employment status allows them to provide for their children. The role that parents play in their children’s lives is essential. In addition, they determine the career of their teenager and who they become when they grow up. This is because they provide the necessary facilities and necessities to enable teenagers to attain their goals. Teenagers start from thirteen to eighteen years of age. At this age, a teenager experiences physical changes and care more about their image and what their peers say about them. They face social and psychological challenges which affect the way they relate with their parents. At this point, parental relationship with teenage children starts to dwindle as much time and effort are channeled towards building a good image among peers. If the parent is incognizant of these changes and unable to finance the teenager to the standards they desire, then, he or she loses contact with the teenage. This makes the relationship weak. Thus, the paper will determine whether the employment status of parents affects their relationship with teenage (Levine & Munsch, 2011).
Independent Variable
Employment status in a family is a matter that affects the running of other activities. For example, schooling and good life for children will be determined by the financial status of parents. Moreover, accessing good health facilities will also depend on employment status. For employed parents, teenagers have access to what they need. The independent variable, in this case, is the parent’s employment status. The reason behind this is that it determines the relationship between the parent and the teenager.
Dependent variable
The dependent variable is the relationship between parents and teens that is subject to employment status. Thus, employment/financial status affects the relationship.
Methodology
The research methodology used is a survey where students from daycare centers and lee elementary. The researcher will randomly select the classes and students to engage in this research. The purpose and use of the survey will be read out loud to the participants and the information collected.
Sampling Methodology
Participants in this research will be randomly selected from a population of students in daycare and elementary schools. Survey questions will be issued to them and they will provide answers by filling in the questions provided. Classes will also be selected randomly. For example, if there are twelve classes, four classes will be selected for participation in this exercise. The reasons why I plan to use random sampling are to give equal chances to students to be selected to participate. This ensures the generalization and application of this information to the population. Random sampling eliminates the chances for biases in the collection and analysis of data. Giving chances to all units within the population leads to diversity in the data collected.
Procedure
The procedure to be followed in the collection of data will be as follows. First, the researcher will write a letter to the administrator/teacher of the target schools. The letter will outline the purpose and need for participation in the research. In addition, the procedure and security measures to be undertaken throughout the study will be outlined to convince the administrator/teacher that the data collected will not be used for any other purpose other than a research study. At the same time, the participating students will be awarded to participate in the study.
The second step is to select the classes and give students the survey papers to go with them and fill them. The questions will be read loudly to them as they continue to fill in the respective questions. Thereafter, they will return the survey with information filled. Before giving out the survey questions, the researcher will read out the procedure and security measures loudly. This will boost students understanding and commitment to participating in the study.
Lastly, the researcher will collect survey papers and do an analysis by grouping the information and data gathered from the study. After the analysis, the survey papers will be destroyed so that they do not get into the wrong hands. In most cases, survey questions or papers get into the wrong hands due to poor disposal and handling of the same. Therefore, the security of information and data obtained will be enhanced and procedures followed to ensure that everything takes place within the set guidelines (Geisler, 2014).
Data Analysis Plan
Once data is collected and grouped into the respective strata, qualitative techniques will be applied in coming up with a formidable research outcome. The strata will use a scale of one to five where the extreme results will be awarded five points while the least takes one point. Some of the questions that will be asked include the occupation of the parent. Moreover, the effects of such occupation on the lives of a young ones will also be determined through the scale. The scale will be as follows: Exceptional relationship (5) good relationship (4) slightly above normal relationship (3) Normal relationship (2) poor relationship (1). The above scale will help determine the factors behind the relationship between teenagers and parents as influenced by parental job status. At the same time, factors that affect each category variables will be outlined and analyzed before making the conclusion.
The dependent variable in this case includes the relationship between parents and teenagers. There are many factors that are in play in consideration of the relationship between a child and the parent. Some of them include the environment where the child grew in. At the same time, a child’s relationships may change as they grow up due to peer pressure and social demands from the community. In today’s world, students are made to believe that what they see and read on social platforms is fun, real, and interesting. Therefore, they behave and adopt the behaviors of role models they came to learn through social platforms. These are some of the things and issues that must be taken into consideration before reaching the verdict. The independent variable (which is employment status in our case) is also subject to multiple factors such as the educational background of the parents and social status. These factors are independent in nature and do not find their way into the relationship. Thus, the determinants should therefore not be ignored during the study.
Conclusion
In conclusion, teenagers and parents develop relationship from birth to adulthood. The relationship is affected by many factors including the job status and environmental condition. The effects of the employment status of parents come in form of motivation, provision of social amenities, and education. To be able to meet these conditions, a parent needs to be employed. Thus, children especially those who have reached adolescent age look up to their parents/guardians for survival. In situations where the parent is unemployed, a student or adolescent finds it difficult to access the most basic amenities and services such as schooling. This will not only affect their relationship with their parents but with the community members. This is because a disappointed youth will turn into crime as a means of making end meet. At this point, the parent should offer guidance but it depends on the bond between the two. Due to change in technology, the lifestyles for teenagers have changed significantly. This is because they look up to models and other social figures demonstrated to be perfect through these media. Thus, the youths are more likely to lead a life that they cannot afford. The lifestyle mounts pressure on parents who work hard to make teenagers happy and feel comfortable irrespective of their employment status. At the same time, the social and environmental conditions surrounding parenting affect the relationship. Time is also a factor when it comes to building healthy relationships with children. For parents who spend a lot of time working, their children feel less attracted to them and hence have a poor relationship.
References
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