Chapter 12

1.) Chapter 12 (“Raising Children – Promises and Pitfalls”) discusses:

· Contemporary Parenting Roles

· A Parent Is Born

· Some Rewards and Difficulties of Parenting

· Motherhood: Ideal versus Realistic Roles

· Fatherhood: Ideal versus Realistic Roles

· Some Theories of Child Development

· Mead’s Theory of the Social Self

· Piaget’s Cognitive Development Theory

· Erikson’s Psychosocial Theory of Development

· Parenting Variations by Ethnicity and Social Class

· Parenting across Racial-Ethnic Families

· Parenting and Social Class

· Parenting Changes Over the Life Course

· Parenting Infants and Babies

· Parenting Children

· Parenting Teenagers

· Parenting in the Crowded Empty Nest

· Parenting in Later Life

· Parenting in Lesbian and Gay Families

· Children with Lesbian and Gay Parents

· Parents with Gay and Lesbian Children

· Parenting Styles and Discipline

· Parenting Styles

· Authoritarian Parenting

· Permissive Parenting

· Authoritative Parenting

· Uninvolved Parenting

· Which Parenting Style is the Most Effective?

· DisciplineReading the three

· Child Care Arrangements

· Absentee Fathers

· Latchkey Kids

· Who’s Minding the Kids?

· Current Social Issues and Children’s Well-Being

· The Impact of Electronic Media

· Children at Risk

· Foster Care

2.) Reading the three theories of development and socialization was interesting; I agreed more with Mead’s Theory of Social Self and Piaget’s Cognitive Development Theory rather than Erikson’s Psychosocial Theory of Human Development. I was also interested in the myths about babies; one myth said, “parents who pick up crying babies will spoil them.” I’ve always heard that, especially when a baby is crying in its crib, some parents will say to leave the baby alone, it’ll eventually fall asleep. That always seemed a little cruel to me so it was interesting to read why it was a myth, and the book gave me a good reason to change some parents’ minds. I also enjoyed reading about parenting teenagers. My younger brother is 16 and it was funny to link some of the things he does with things from the book.

3.) Which theory/theories of development and socialization do you agree more with, and if your choices differ from mine, can you explain your logic?

I feel as though as I have gotten older and matured, and as my younger brother has gotten older, not only have my brother and I become friends, but I’m not embarrassed by my parents anymore and I feel like although they are my parents, they’re also my friends. I can joke with them, laugh with them, cry with them, etc. all the things I do with my “regular” friends. I’m curious as to what you have experienced in the changing relationship between yourself and your family as you have grown up?