Part 3: Research Paper (25%)
Prepare a 7 - 10 page (not including title and reference pages) scholarly research paper on the underlying issue/issues of
... [Show More] the scenario you chose in the Lot in Life Applied Final Project and a description of how parents can address the issue/s -- based upon at least one human development theory and up-to-date research findings. Your paper should include information from at least 8 primary scholarly sources of information (peer reviewed journal articles published in the last five years and books authored by theorists studied in our course. These sources of information are in addition to information from government and community agencies.
If, in addition to the required sources of information as described above, you include World Wide Web sources of information on your topic, you will want to review the guidelines for evaluating Internet sources of information (see "Web Resources" sub-heading below). Do not draw information from Wikipedia.
Sources of information should be cited and referenced in APA 6th edition, style.
Note: Your references for Part 3 do not have the be the same sources of information included in Parts 1 and 2. You may have located more appropriate and/or more recent sources of information since the submission of Parts 1 and 2.
You will contact at least two local community agencies (not just their websites) that provide face-to-face services, workshops, interventions, skills trainings, and support programs for individuals and families dealing with the issues and problems related to your selected scenario.
Include descriptions of their mission statement, specific contact information, description of provided services and programs, etc. and cost of services, etc. Do not just provide links to websites.
Writing Tip: This is to be a scholarly paper, written in third person voice (do not write "I," "we," "you," "us," "our," etc.
Assignment Format and Referencing Style: Write in essay/paragraph style.
Use UMUC's Guide to Writing and Research for how to cite and reference your sources of information in APA style.
Grading Criteria/Rubric (25%)
A grading rubric for Part 3 of the Applied Final Project is posted in Content as a sub-module under Syllabus.
Web Resources
As you use the Web for information, you should be aware of the fact that the Web has both good and bad information, as well as information that is biased. There are many online resources devoted to finding and evaluating information on the Web. A very detailed discussion of how to evaluate information can be found at Johns Hopkins University. Do not use Wikipedia as a source for your information.
Finally, sources that tend to have good information include the following: college or university department sites (be careful of student pages; some are very good, but some are not so good), professional organizations, governmental agencies, peer-reviewed academic journals, and professional journals.
Use the following Check List when submitting the research paper. RESEARCH PAPERS MISSING THE CHECK LIST WILL LOSE THREE POINTS.
Module 1: Introduction to Parenting Issues
Our cultural history and our cultural values have shaped our beliefs about children. Keep history
in mind as we study parenting in the twenty-first century. But also reflect on our cultural values.
Sometimes our actions are in contrast to what we say we value. We say we value children and
that parenting is an important responsibility, but is this reflected in our actions? The salaries paid
to childcare workers are extremely low, and politicians frequently receive less political fallout
when they cut funds for schools than for other projects. These facts are part of the reality of our
culture's attitude toward children and parenting.
As you complete the readings in this module, reflect on your own values as a parent. What are
the reasons behind your decision to have a child? What will your parenting style be? How will you
raise this child to participate as a contributing member of a very diverse society?
Factors that Influence Our Lives and Decisions
Psychologists talk about three clocks that influence our lives and decisions: the social, the
psychological, and the biological. Through the social clock, society suggests when we should be
in school, marry, work, have children, and retire. In the United States the social clock has gotten
more flexible in the last 25–30 years, as evidenced by your presence in this course at an age
that is probably beyond the traditional college age of 30 years ago. Because of the demands of
society today, many of us participate in lifelong learning. As a result, the tradition of school, then
work, then retirement in a specific order, has changed.
The psychological clock is the person's individual clock involving readiness for life's tasks. The
biological clock controls the body's readiness for activities that have a biological component, such
as pregnancy. The many factors that must be taken into account when deciding to have a child
can all be classified under one of these three clocks. If you are a parent, reflect on what your
three clocks were indicating when you had your children. Were the three clocks in sync? If you
are not a parent, do you think your clocks be in sync when you have children?
Parenting Style
Diana Baumrind's theory of parenting styles is the most widely accepted theory and is covered in
your course readings. Baumrind has proposed the concept of parenting style which incorporates
the parent's overall values, practices, and behaviors rather than focusing on specific parenting
behaviors such as spanking, toilet training, or reading aloud.
Baumrind's theory focuses on parental control and examines two factors: parental
responsiveness and parental demandingness. Parental responsiveness (also referred to
as parental warmth or supportiveness) refers to "the extent to which parents intentionally foster
individuality, self-regulation, and self-assertion by being attuned, supportive, and acquiescent to
children's special needs and demands" (Baumrind 1991, 62). Parental demandingness (also
referred to as behavioral control) refers to "the claims parents make on children to become
integrated into the family whole, by their maturity demands, supervision, disciplinary efforts and
willingness to confront the child who disobeys" (Baumrind 1991, 61-62).
Baumrind proposed four parenting styles: authoritative, authoritarian, and permissive, and
uninvolved. Research shows that each of the styles can be used to predict child well-being in
terms of social competence, academic performance, psychosocial development, and problem
behavior. It should also be pointed out that there are some cultural and ethnic differences in the
effect of parenting style on children's behavioral outcomes. It is also important to note that a
parent tends to show a general style, and not all of a parent's actions are categorized by one
style. You should review the four parenting styles and see which one would characterize your
approach (or your own parent's approach).
Behavior and Discipline
One issue that baffles parents is why children persist in behaviors that the parents don't want
and that the parents believe they are punishing. Sometimes a parent’s actions can contribute to
the child’s misbehavior. Understanding how behavior is learned and what factors control behavior
can help parents analyze what is underlying a child's behavior.
Too often people use the terms punishment and discipline interchangeably; these terms are not
identical. The root meaning of the word discipline means to teach. Often the most effective ways
to discipline a child do not involve punishment. Psychologists warn that punishment is tricky to
use correctly and can have unintended negative consequences. In addition, parents should
distinguish between punishment and corporal (physical) punishment. Not all punishment involves
corporal punishment. The wise parent is aware of these factors.
Positive Reinforcement, Negative Reinforcement, and Punishment
Negative reinforcement, punishment, and positive reinforcement are psychological terms that are
often confused and used incorrectly. Negative reinforcement and punishment are different
concepts and have opposite effects. Punishment results in a decrease in the rate or occurrence of
a behavior. Punishment is presenting unpleasant consequences when a behavior occurs, with the
result that the rate of the behavior decreases and the behavior eventually disappears.
The term reinforcement is used to describe consequences that increase the rate of occurrence
of any response that it follows. There are two types of reinforcement: positive and
negative. Positive reinforcement is the presentation of a pleasant consequence when a
behavior occurs. Positive reinforcement can include anything that a person finds rewarding or
pleasant, such as a stop at McDonald's, a trip to the park, public praise, a hug, or money.
In contrast, negative reinforcement works by removing something unpleasant when positive
or desired behavior has occurred, thereby making it more likely that the response will be
repeated when the unpleasant situation begins again. For example, a child insists in a loud and
demanding voice that her mother stop what she is doing and hem her skirt "right now." The child
is sent to her room until she can make her request appropriately. When that occurs, the child
may rejoin the family. An easy sequence to remember for effective negative reinforcement is the
following:
1. Inappropriate or undesired behavior is displayed (child demanding her mother stop what
she is doing to hem her skirt).
2. Something negative is applied until appropriate or desired behavior is displayed (child is
sent to her room until she can make her request appropriately).
3. The negative reinforcement is removed (when she makes her request appropriately she
isn't sent to her room).
The key here is the last step. If the child makes the request in the appropriate way, the negative
situation of being sent to her room will be removed. The removal of the unpleasant situation is
negative reinforcement. This makes it more likely that the next time something unpleasant
occurs, the child will again respond in a way that leads to the removal of something unpleasant.
Thus, she received negative reinforcement.
One example of both positive and negative reinforcement operating is the frequently occurring
situation where a parent and a young child are in the checkout line at the grocery store. The
child asks for some candy and the dad says "No, not this time." The child asks again and begins
to whine or even throw a tantrum. This is unpleasant for the dad. The dad, who is tired and
doesn't want to deal with the situation right now, says, "OK, OK, we'll get it." The child stops
whining. The child has just negatively reinforced the dad. The whining was unpleasant, dad said
OK, and the whining stopped. The child is training the dad to repeat the behavior of giving in to
whining. At the same time, dad has just positively reinforced the whining behavior by rewarding
it with candy. Both dad and the child have reinforced each other's behavior, using both positive
and negative reinforcement.
If the dad had ignored the whining, it would have been extinction, and the child may have
stopped the whining behavior. If the dad spoke sharply and said "Stop whining now!" it would be
punishment (if the child views that as unpleasant).
The following chart illustrates the concepts discussed in this section. Study the chart to clarify
your understanding of these concepts.
Osterhouse, Schultz, Spear, and Thomas. 1986. Student Workbook to Accompany Kagan and Havermann's Psychology: An
Introduction 4th ed. (Largo, MD: Prince George's Community College): 16.
These distinctions are technical, but a clear understanding of these concepts is helpful in
discussing or making use of them. Further, the concepts can help in analyzing why a strategy
might not be working.
Extinction and Punishment
Two of the terms psychologists use to describe ways of reducing the frequency of a behavior are
extinction and punishment. In extinction, the behavior takes place and no reward (or
reinforcement) occurs. One example of this is ignoring an unwanted behavior. Frequently a child
misbehaves in class to gain attention. If the teacher and other members of the class do not pay
attention to this behavior, the behavior is being extinguished and will most likely disappear for
lack of reinforcement. In this fashion, ignoring is a form of extinction and not punishment.
In the case of punishment, the behavior takes place and some unpleasant consequences occur.
The most obvious example of an unpleasant consequence would be a spanking. Spanking is a
punishment. A speeding ticket is a punishment. A jail term is a punishment. Overall,
psychologists suggest avoiding punishment and instead focusing on using extinction to eliminate
undesired behaviors, while at the same time rewarding desired behaviors.
Sometimes punishment must be used. If punishment is used, it should be immediate, consistent,
and clearly tied to the offense. Punishment should be administered calmly and in private and
should not embarrass the child.
Parents should be aware of a number of problems with punishment. Punishment does decrease
the occurrence of the unwanted behavior, but it does not teach desired behavior. In other cases,
harsh punishment can traumatize a child who does stop the unwanted behavior but retreats into
a shell and does not participate in positive behaviors. The child might even try to avoid the
punitive parent. The use of corporal punishment can result in an increase in aggressive behavior
as the child imitates the punisher and sees that inflicting pain on a loved one is an acceptable
response to dealing with problems.
"Time out," if implemented correctly, is not viewed by psychologists as a form of punishment.
Rather it is seen as removing the child from a situation in which they can receive reinforcement.
Time out is frequently overused and misused in the United States today. It should be used for
aggressive or destructive behaviors and in situations where the child seems to be losing control.
Time out provides for a "cooling off" period for the child. It should be used for a limited (2 to 3)
number of behaviors at a time or the child may spend too much of the day in "time out."
With any punishment, its effectiveness decreases with repeated use. A child begins to weigh the
consequences of engaging in an activity with the consequences of the punishment.
One problem with punishment is that often what the parent or teacher considers punishment
doesn't work because the child receiving it either (a) doesn't find it unpleasant or (b) doesn't find
it unpleasant enough to offset some other reinforcement gotten from continuing with the
behavior. For example, suppose a boy gets written up for detention. If the entire class paid
attention to his behavior and the teacher gave up class time to reprimand him, then the child
received what he wanted: attention. The attention was judged by the child to be worth the trade-
off of a detention. I know many adults who say that some behavior they engaged as a child was
worth the spanking they received later!
Natural and Logical Consequences
Rudolph Dreikurs is a theorist who advocated the use of natural and logical
consequences. Natural consequences are the natural outcome of behavior where the parents
do not interfere. If a child leaves his toys outside in the rain, the toys may become rusty or
soggy. If a child forgets to take her lunch or lunch money she will be hungry. Dreikurs said that
a parent should not waste breath constantly reminding children about some of these types of
things. You should explain the consequences initially and then let the child experience the
natural consequences.
Logical consequences are those that a parent explains to the child as being the outcome of his
behavior. For example, a parent says that if the dishes are not done by 8 PM, the television may
not be turned on. Or, if the child's room is not cleaned by Saturday afternoon she will not be able
to go out with her friends. Dreikurs recommended explaining these consequences to the child
and then not talking about it. However, when the behavior (the dishes or the room cleaning) do
not occur and 8 PM or Saturday afternoon roll around, the parent calmly enforces the logical,
pre-explained consequences. Dreikurs said that parents have a habit of continually reminding
(nagging) the children to "do the dishes" or "clean your room." He suggests that you explain the
logical consequences and then don't continually remind the child about the consequences or
tasks.
Natural consequences are great, because you, as the parent, are not acting as the heavy.
However, sometimes natural consequences simply will not work. A parent cannot let the child
run into the street. The natural consequences of getting hit by a car could be effective but
undesired! In other cases you set up logical consequences because the behaviors you are
modifying don't really have natural consequences that would change the child's behavior. In the
case of the room cleaning the natural consequences of a messy room may not bother a child and
not change the behavior. However, the messy room does bother you and you do not want this.
So you set up logical consequences in order to modify the behavior.
Parental Actions that Contribute to Misbehaviors
There are a number of ways in which a parent's actions can contribute to a child's misbehavior.
We have all heard the phrase, "Do as I say, not as I do." However, parents need to be aware
that they do model behavior for their children. Children can learn intolerance towards others,
when their parent refers to some other ethnic group in a disparaging way; dishonesty, when
their parent lies about the child's age to get a lower priced movie ticket; and the use of alcohol
and drugs to "solve" problems quickly.
Sometimes parents inadvertently reward the behavior they say they do not want. A young child
says a "dirty" word and the parent tells the child "no." But then the parent tells grandma and
grandpa, and all the adults chuckle. The child sees this (it is positive reinforcement!) and decides
that the parent really wanted this behavior. And so the behavior continues. How many times
have you seen something like this happen?
Raising a Child in a Diverse World
It has become obvious that we in the United States live in a multicultural society, and all of us
function in a diverse global environment. We all need to raise our children is such a way that
they can function effectively in this world. The behavior that we model for our children is very
important. Interestingly, recent research has indicated that the effect of a parenting style varies
with culture. Your textbooks go into further detail on this topic.
Reference
Baumrind, Diana. 1991. The Influence of Parenting Style on Adolescent Competence and
Substance Use. Journal of Early Adolescence, 11(1): 56–95. [Show Less]