CHARACTERISTICS OF DEVELOPMENT IN SINGLE-PARENT FAMILIES

Zbog pluralnosti oblika obitelji ne postoji jedna definicija s kojom bi se svi stručnjaci složili. Tradicionalno se na obitelj gleda kao bračnu zajednicu muške i ženske osobe i njihovu djecu. U današnje vrijeme javljaju se razni novi oblici obitelji, a pojave kao što su jednoroditeljske obitelji, izvanbračna djeca, rastave braka, neformalne veze i samačka kućanstva su sve češće. Tri su glavna uzroka nastanka jednoroditeljskih obitelji, a od njih je najčešći rastava braka, zatim izvanbračno rođenje djeteta, i konačno smrt jednog od supružnika. Tradicionalno se ulogom oca smatrala materijalna, a majke emocionalna podrška, dok te uloge danas mogu biti izjednačene ili čak suprotne, što se pokazalo pozitivnim faktorom u funkcionalnosti braka. Roditeljski stil koji se smatra najoptimalnijim za dijete je autoritativni stil zbog toga što pruža dovoljno topline ali i nadzora djeci. Život u jednoroditeljskoj obitelji vezuje se za mnogo problema od čega je najučestaliji financijske poteškoće. Razvod braka može i ne mora imati negativan utjecaj na dijete, ovisno o tome nastaje li nakon razvoda više ili manje konfliktna situacija. Svaka smrt roditelja ostavlja trag na djetetov život, ali najnepovoljnije utječe smrt nastala samoubojstvom zbog nerazriješene situacije i srama kojeg ostavlja za sobom. Zbog stava da su majke koje su rodile izvanbračno dijete same krive za svoju situaciju, najviše su osuđivane od okoline i dobivaju najmanje podrške. Nezadovoljstvo roditelja negativno utječe na dijete, a najčešći uzrok nezadovoljstva je negativna samoprocjena obiteljske situacije. Najveći izvor financijske, materijalne i praktične podrške samohranim roditeljima su njihovi roditelji i uža obitelj, dok najviše emocionalne podrške pružaju prijatelji. Društvo generalno ima negativne stavove o samohranom roditeljstvu i zbog toga se takvim obiteljima ne pruža dovoljno podrške.Due to the plurality of family types, there is no single definition that all specialists would agree on. Traditionally, family is considered to be a marital union of a man and a woman with their children. Today, there are various new types of families, and phenomena like single-parent families, children out of wedlock, divorces, informal relationships and single households are more frequent. There are three main causes of occurrence of single-parent families, and the most frequent is divorce, followed by birth out of wedlock and death of a spouse. Traditionally, the role of the father was material, and of the mother was emotional support, while today, those roles can be equal or even opposite, which has proved to be a positive factor in the functionality of a marriage. The style of parenting that proved to be most optimal was authoritative because it provides enough warmth and enough control to the children. Life in a single-parent family is associated with many problems, of which financial troubles are the most common one. Divorce can but does not have to have a negative influence on a child, depending on the level of conflict that appears after it. Every death of a parent leaves a trace in child’s life, but the one that has the most negative effect is death by suicide because of the unresolved situation and the shame that it leaves behind. Because of the opinion that the situation that mothers with a child out of wedlock are in is their own fault, they are a subject of the largest amount of judgement from their surroundings and get the least amount of support. Parent dissatisfaction has a negative effect on a child, and its main cause is a negative self-assessment of a family situation. The main source of financial, material and practical support to single parents are their parents and immediate family, while they get most emotional support from their friends. Society, in general, has a negative outlook on single parenting, and, because of that, those families do not get sufficient support