Original scientific paper
https://doi.org/10.3935/rsp.v17i1.889
Attitudes Toward Single Parenthood
Ninoslava Pećnik
; Studijski centar socijalnog rada, Pravni fakultet Sveučilišta u Zagrebu
Zora Raboteg-Šarić
Abstract
Changes in the family structure produce different social reactions, and the negative attitude of society towards single parent families can generate social vulnerability of this group. (The lack of) understanding of the environment influences not only the behaviour of other persons toward single parents and their children, but also their attitudes and personal experience of single parenthood. In order to improve the insight into the experience of new forms of family in our society, a survey of the attitudes of parents of different marital status and gender towards single parenthood, and the connection of the attitudes towards single parenthood with other socio-demographic characteristics of parents was analysed. The sample included 384 parents from families with two parents (301 women and 83 men) and 376 parents from single parent families (325 women and 51 men) from four largest towns in Croatia. For the research purposes, the scale of attitudes towards single parenthood was formed, and its parts relate to the assumed characteristics of single parents and the assumed effects of single parenthood on the development of the children. The results have shown that single parents, women, younger parents and parents of better material status show more positive attitudes towards single parenthood. The second aim of the research was to analyse the differences in the perceived attitude of society towards different subgroups of single parent families. According to the opinion of the parents who participated in the survey, society does not treat all single parents equally, but differentiates them according to the way how they became single parents and according to their gender. While the attitude of society towards widows and widowers is a positive one, it is unfavourable towards the divorced and single fathers, and even more so towards the divorced and unmarried mothers. With regard to the perceived social attitudes, mothers of illegitimate children are in the most unfavourable position. The results of this and other research studies point out that single parents may encounter difficulties in establishing their credibility as parents, and that can be the result of the negative attitudes and stereotypes about them. If the providers of social services are contributing to this, we can speak of the psychological obstacles in the realisation of social rights imposed by the service providers.
Keywords
Hrčak ID:
48799
URI
Publication date:
13.3.2010.
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