Single Parenting and its Impact on Emotional and Academic Development of Adolescents

Abstract

This longitudinal study is best to understand the adolescents’ emotional and academic development when are raised by one parent. Mothers and fathers have different parenting strengths and offer different emotional and academic resources. A sample of 620 adolescents (evenly taken from mother/father-led homes) across 7 years was tested every two years since the adolescents were age 13. A booklet containing 5 scales to measure Perception of Parents, Emotional Intelligence, Mental Well-Being, Current Thoughts, and Peer Relations was administered to adolescents at age 13, 15, 17, and 19. Over the years, it was found that the emotional health and academic success was differently developed in both samples from mother-led homes and father-led homes. Contradictory to assumption that mothers are usually considered more sensitive and nurturer parent equipped emotionally to handle raising children alone, present research suggested that adolescents living with their fathers had greater emotional intelligence, mental well-being, self-esteem, and academic achievement than adolescents living with their mothers because single fathers tend to have higher incomes so could have access to better housing, schools, and child-care options. In addition, adolescents in mother-led homes generally have stronger peer relations than adolescents in father-led homes. Because it was found that mothers when are perceived more involved, and provide greater warmth, can develop the social skills in adolescents. Fathers, however, contributed to their adolescents’ emotional development by providing autonomy. The study is helpful for teachers to comprehend the problems of students and to redesign schools to meet needs of students raised in floundering families.