THE EFFECTS OF SINGLE PARENTHOOD ON EDUCATIONAL AND PSYCHOLOGICAL DEVELOPMENT AMONG ADOLESCENTS OF ACK CATHEDRAL ARCHDEACONRY DIOCESE OF MT. KENYA CENTRAL, KENYA

Single parenthood has greatly influenced the educational and psychological development of many adolescents, more so in developed nations. The purpose of this paper was to establish the effects of single parenthood on educational and psychological development among adolescents of ACK Cathedral Archdeaconry Diocese of Mt. Kenya Central. This paper was guided by two objectives namely: to determine the relationship between adolescent educational achievement and the single parenthood in Cathedral Archdeaconry, and to assess the impact of single parenthood on the adolescent’s psychological development in Cathedral Archdeaconry. The study utilised descriptive research design to collect quantitative data from 75 adolescents and 75 parents which was analysed descriptively and inferentially. The study found out that majority of the adolescents were coming from single parent households with grandmothers as household heads with few households headed by their biological mothers who are rarely available for the youths. The study further established that this structure of households negatively influences the educational and psychological development of the adolescents. The study recommends that single parents must be proactive in the manner they handle and parent their adolescents by creating time to properly up bring them to avoid lapses in their educational and psychological development