Sometimes marriages break down, a spouse passes away or partners decide to separate. This can be a very emotional time for all involved, especially if children are involved. Many children are raised by a single parent alone, and Sociologists find it important to look at how lone-parent families appear and what difficulties they face.
- We will discuss the reasons behind the rise of lone parenthood in the West.
- We'll move on to sociological patterns around lone parents and the pressures they experience.
Lone parenthood in sociology
How do we define lone parenthood in sociology?
Lone parenthood is where a mother or a father takes care of dependent children without a partner. The breaking up of nuclear families, due to separation, divorce, or the death of one spouse, creates lone-parent families.
While some sociologists use the terms 'lone parenthood' and 'single parenthood' synonymously, others differentiate by defining single-parent families as units with one parent from the beginning by choice.
It is commonly acknowledged, however, that lone parenthood and single parenthood have similar difficulties, both practically and emotionally.
The phenomenon of lone parenthood
The phenomenon of lone parenthood is a problem for sociologists. According to ONS, there were 2.9 million lone-parent families in the UK in 2020, which is 14.7 percent of all families in England and Wales.
Statistics show that there has been a gradual rise in the past decades in the number of lone parents in the UK and in other Western countries (ons.gov.uk).
Reasons for the rise of lone-parent families in the West
There has been a gradual rise in the number of divorces in the West. Families with children often break into lone-parent families after divorces.
There have been fewer marriages in the West. Unmarried, cohabiting partners are more likely to break up than married couples. If there are children the resulting families are lone-parent families.
There is no longer a stigma around unmarried women giving birth. Previously, women had to hide pregnancies outside of marriage, and they could not always keep the children born out of wedlock. Society now accepts many forms of family diversity, including lone-parenthood and single-parenthood (Allan and Crow, 2001).
Fig. 1 - There are more and more single women giving birth outside of marriage.
To further explore this social phenomenon, let's look at the sociological patterns around lone parenthood.
The impact of lone parenthood on women
We should consider the impact of lone parenthood on a group of society that is significantly affected by this issue: women.
The majority of lone-parent families in the UK have always been lone-mother families, although the number of lone-father families has been on the rise since the 1990s (ons.gov.uk).
Lone mothers in Britain have access to welfare benefits. According to the New Right, the whole welfare system suffers from single mothers’ needs and demand for these benefits.
Lone parents of either gender challenge the stereotypical gender roles because they have to fill both breadwinner and home-maker roles.
The pressures of lone parenthood on the working-class
The working-class faces pressures of lone parenthood for various reasons.
Lone parents from different social backgrounds have different experiences of lone parenthood.
Children of lone-parent families can have different experiences of growing up with a single parent as well, depending on the socioeconomic status of the parent.
According to John O’Neill (2002), single parents are more likely to come from working-class backgrounds, have lower incomes, or live in poverty than two-parent families.
The Black community and lone parenthood
In particular, sociologists note the relationship between the Black community and lone parenthood.
Statistics show that most lone parents in the UK are White, but White lone-parent families are a minority among all White families (ethnicity-facts-figures.service.gov.uk).
Mann (2009) found that 45 percent of all Black Caribbean families in the UK were lone-parent families, usually lone-mother families.
The percentage of lone-parent families is the lowest among Asian families, which might be the reason why Asian single mothers are much more underrepresented than Black or White single parents.
Fig. 2 - The number of lone-father families has been on the rise since the 1990s in the West.
Western welfare regimes for lone parenthood
Lone parents experience financial difficulties and find themselves dependent on welfare benefits more often than two-parent families. There are two types of welfare support for lone parents in Western countries.
Stay-at-home lone parents
This involves supporting lone parents to be able to stay home with their dependent children.
This involves supporting lone parents to find suitable work opportunities.
In Sweden, wages for lone parents are generous, and they receive support with childcare so that they have time for work.
UK welfare regime
The UK provides a mixture of the two types of support; there is help for lone parents to find work and childcare and also financial benefits to staying home with the children when necessary. However, wages are lower in the UK and the benefits are also less generous, which means only a minority of lone parents can escape poverty.
Lone parents and the nuclear family
Robert Chester (1985) argues that while alternative family forms are accepted and celebrated in Western society, the ideal family style remains the nuclear family, especially for those who are in an alternative family form not by their own choosing.
Lone parents often marry, remarry, or enter cohabitation with a partner, so lone parenthood is not necessarily for life.
Sociological perspectives on lone parenthood
Let's look at sociological perspectives of lone parenthood, including their reasons for the increasing number of lone parents and whether they view this change positively or negatively.
Functionalism on lone parenthood
Functionalists like Ronald Fletcher (1966) are not overly critical of lone parenthood. They support government legislations that aim to benefit families in need and help them perform better.
However, they believe that the traditional nuclear family can fulfil all of the family functions (reproduction, care and protection for the family members, socialisation of children, and the regulation of sexual behaviour) in the best way.
Feminism one lone parenthood
Feminists usually claim that the traditional nuclear family ideal is the product of the patriarchal structure which is built on the exploitation of women. They support all the societal and legislative changes that made it possible for women to get a divorce and take care of their families alone if necessary.
At the same time, feminists raise attention to the financial and emotional difficulties that lone parents, especially lone mothers, have to face.
The New Right on lone parenthood
The New Right holds very negative views on the growing number of welfare-dependent single mothers and blames a general moral decline for the increasing number of separations and divorces that break nuclear families into lone-parent families.Charles Murray (1988) argued that if welfare benefits were less generous, couples would stay together and preserve the nuclear family, which according to the New Right is ‘the building block of society’.
Postmodernism on lone parenthood
Postmodernist individualism supports the idea that a person is allowed to find the types of relationships and family setup that is right for them. They believe that every form of family, including lone-parent families, has the potential to operate well and fulfil the physical and emotional needs of its members.
Personal Life perspective and lone parenthood
Sociologists of the personal life perspective focus on the experiences of the lone parent as an individual and the social context around their experiences.
Lone Parenthood - Key takeaways
- Lone parenthood means that a mother or a father takes care of dependent children without a partner. The breaking up of nuclear families due to separation, divorce, or the death of one spouse, creates lone-parent families.
- There has been a gradual rise in the number of divorces in the West. Families with children often break into lone-parent families after divorces.
- The majority of lone-parent families in the UK have always been lone-mother families, although the number of lone-father families has been on the rise since the 1990s (ons.gov.uk).
- Mann (2009) found that 45 percent of all Black Caribbean families in the UK were lone-parent families, usually lone-mother families.
- The UK provides a mixture of the two types of support. There is help for lone parents to find work and childcare. However, the wages are lower and the benefits less generous, which means only a minority of lone parents can escape poverty.
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