A study funded by the John Templeton Foundation has concluded that family culture plays a significant role in how children are raised. They interviewed 3000 parents with school age children and then determined that there were four significant groups.
Twenty percent of parents fall into a category called the Faithful. These are church-going families who practice the traditional religious values of Christianity, Judaism, or Islam. They often spank, disapprove of gay marriage, preach abstinence before marriage, pray before meals, and openly teach their children about faith and values. The women are often homemakers. Unlike the traditional stereotype, however, these families also believe men should put their families before their careers and they work to create a warm and supportive environment. They are less supportive of public education and tend to have larger families. They are slightly more likely to have a college degree. They are less likely than other groups to believe a mother is more important than a father in raising children.
Engaged progressives make up slightly more of the population—21 percent. These parents don’t believe in moral absolutes, although they may accept the Golden Rule. Beyond that, they believe people should choose their own morality and they choose their own by what feels right to them. They don’t trust religion and prefer to focus on freedom and responsibility. They tend to have less restrictive parenting rules, providing no supervision for the Internet or media their teens use. However, they define themselves as moderates or, less often strict, despite being hesitant to punish or even to threaten punishment. They dislike the term permissive for their parenting style.
Members of the detached group tend to be blue collar workers with less education. They are skeptics and distrust the views of both groups mentioned above. Their marriages are less successful and they do not have good relationships with their children. Their children have poor grades because they don’t supervise homework or interact much with their children. They feel they don’t stand a chance against the outside world. They are pessimists about their lives and their children’s futures, and although they say they believe in God, they don’t attend church and don’t make religion a part of their children’s lives. Nineteen percent of Americans fit into this culture.
A larger percentage, 27 percent, belong to the American Dreamers culture. They are very optimistic about life and their children’s lives, even when they don’t have much money or education. Parenting and family are the center of their lives and they try hard to give their children every possible advantage. This culture is common among blacks and Hispanics and among women. They have public opinions and consider religion important, but are more accepting of the faiths and beliefs of others. They balance praise and discipline and hope for a close relationship with their children when the children are grown.
Researchers did not find that these cultures created uniformity in results. Children grew up in very different ways, even within the same families. Family is far from the only influence on children.
Comments attached to various reports of this study shows that most parents do not see themselves fitting rigidly into just one category. This seems particularly true among people who see themselves in both the faithful and dreamers categories. Such studies can be helpful in allowing parents to determine their natural style and the possible impact of that style, but in general, it is wise for parents to use inspiration in choosing their family style, rather than trying to fit themselves into a category. Few people fit into a stereotype completely. It should also be noted that this study does not demonstrate any outcomes and is based solely on the personal views of the parents, who have not yet learned the results of their choices.
The study shows that 83 percent of parents try to protect themselves from negative outside influences. Both Republicans and Democrats equally state they work to protect their children from social negative influences, although women are more likely to say so than are men. Six out of ten parents wish they spent more time with their children than they do.
The study showed many parents do not really know what is going on in their children’s lives. They report a higher average grade point average than the national average, and a smaller percentage of children who use alcohol than is shown in national studies of teens.
In spite of the challenges, 94 percent of parents enjoy parenting their children. 95 percent spend at least an hour a day interacting with their children on school days and 96 percent of parents say they enjoy doing so. Disagreements are normally over ordinary challenges, such as chores, homework, and sibling relationships.
The family culture includes the level of support parents receive in their parenting. 79 percent have at least moderate parenting support from a spouse or partner. 56 have support from extended family, and 36 percent have the support of friends. 27 percent receive support from their place of worship and that number is 51 percent among those who attend church regularly. One to six percent of parents have no support at all, and most of those have low incomes and are single.
More information:
Lois M. Collins, A family’s ‘culture’ type trumps its parenting style, Deseret News, Nov. 28 2012