Researcher goal in completing study is to offer insight into the world of African American teen fathers. A qualitative research design will be adopted to explore the topic of what is the experience of being an African American teen father. Merriam (2005) stated, “Qualitative research is interested in how meaning is constructed, how people make sense of their lives and their worlds” (p. 24). There are several methods used to gather information using a qualitative research approach. Case study methodology is the chosen methodology to assist researcher in attacking the research question what is the experience of being an African American teen father. The study will employ a case study research methodology to gain in-depth knowledge on the experience …show more content…
To explore what is the experience of being an African American teen father a descriptive case study will be conducted. A descriptive case study is used to describe an intervention or phenomenon and the real-life context in which it occurred (Yin, 2003). The purpose of the propose dissertation is to explore the world of African American teen fathers and get firsthand information on what it is like to be a teen father. The topic of teen pregnancy is not a new subject, but much of the data focus on teen mother. Past and present literature has supported the notion that the subject of teen fatherhood needs more exploration. Over nineteen years ago, researchers Allen and Doherty (1996) found “compared with adolescent mothers, relatively little is known about adolescent fathers (p. 220).” More recent literature also supports Allen and Doherty conducted by Mollborn. Mollborn (2010) found “a large and growing body of literature on teenage childbearing generally focuses on one of two areas: preventing teenage pregnancy or documenting its consequences for young mothers and their families”. Both bodies of research took place many years of apart focusing on the same topic at hand. The literature indicates that there is general agreement the need to exploration on the topic of teen
There are many open wounds in the African-American community that have not healed what so ever. Disintegration of family structures in the African-American community has been a persistent problem for far too long. High out of wedlock birth rates, absent fathers, and the lack of a family support network for many young African-Americans have led to serious problems in America's urban areas. The persistence of serious social problems in inner-city areas has led to a tragic perpetuation of racial prejudice as well. African Americans still face a litany of problems in the 21st century today.
Unequal Childhoods is an ethnography outlining the study done by Annette Lareau which researched how socioeconomic classes impact parenting among both white and African American families. She used both participant observation and interviewing. 12 families participated in this study where she came to conclusions on whether they displayed parenting styles of concerted cultivation or natural growth based of their socioeconomic status. Concerted cultivation is a parenting style where the parent(s) are fully invested in creating as much opportunity for their child as possible, but results in a child with a sense of entitlement. An example of this would be a parent who places their children in a wide array of extracurricular activities and/or actively speaks to educators about the accommodations their child needs to effectively learn.
59 percent of African American households in Maryland in 2009 consist of only one parent. Both the author and the other Wes grew up without a father figure. Graduation rate of 66.7 percent for Baltimore City Schools
Throughout history Black fathers are characterized as being “deadbeat dads” or not be around to raise their children. There is this ongoing issue that shows Black fathers being ignored and hindered in American society. Starting back in slavery, Black fathers job was to tend to the fields and to whatever the master wanted. This caused the separation between children and their fathers. Many times, the owners would split of the families, so that mean children did not have time to get the love or attention they needed from their fathers.
After reading, The Other Wes Moore, it intrigued me how so many of our young people are growing up in families where the parent or parents cannot provide a suitable environment that provides fundamental resources. This book talks about two males that could have ended up with the same fate only if there had not been any assistance to guide one of them on a different path. It is evident that our environment is an essential factor in how we adapt and attain the life that we live. With limited resources, our youth has become a statistic of their environments. As these generations continuously extend, minorities have become the target of a huge issue such as teen pregnancy.
Though family and kindship were rooted in African American traditions for its use of “linking lineages and villages” (Goode, Jones, Jackson 155), it is also immensely valued for the reason that numerous African American families were broken up and disorganized for so many decades due to slavery and unequal rights, thus many families had to rely on extended family, such as grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins and close friendships to care for, and socialize their children, highlighting their perseverance to reestablish a strong family presence despite conditions where biological parents were absent. This still true in African American culture today, for multiple generations frequently reside in the same household to provide social and emotional support for the child if the mother and father are working or generally absent, as well as extended relatives, outside of the home, providing financial support, following a cultured valued belief of a collective community where many African American’s “pool resources for a common benefit” (Goode, Jones, Jackson 156), strengthing the family and community as a whole and improving the political and societal status of the group, while keeping racial consciousness in
Interview Questions for African American Families Please find a person of African American descent to interview. The person needs to at least 21 years of age. Please inform the person that this interview is for an assignment in class (educational purposes only) and the information provided will remain confidential. Please try to obtain more than “sound bites” yes/no answers. Asked follow up questions if the interviewee’s answers are too brief (ex: Can you please provide an example or elaborate, tell me more etc..).
Most recent finding on teen parenthood focuses on the teen mother as a result; a vast amount of information is missing from the experience of teen fathers. According to Mollborn (2010), “A large and growing body of literature on teenage childbearing generally focuses on one of two areas: preventing teenage pregnancy or documenting its consequences for young mothers and their families”. Based on the lack of emphasis placed on African American teen fathers provides an indication there is a need for a continuation of research to gain insight on the experience of being a African American teen father. Coles (2009b) conducted a study where she explored several factors of African American fatherhood. Cole interviewed 21 single African American fathers
Amy Schaltes effortlessly argues that sex, one of life’s most trivial issues, could be less difficult to handle if parents embraced their children’s natural maturation, instead of shying away from it. Schaltes’s “The Sleepover Question” is informative, and gets the audience thinking. Why is teen sex so controversial? Would talking about it remove the stigma from consensual teenage sex? Further, should the stigma be removed?
Social Group: Fathers During this time period, fathers were the “breadwinners” and expected to work and provide for their families. However, black fathers in the 1950’s particular had to work long hours because the only jobs available to them were often low paying. This directly correlates with African-American’s low place on the social ladder during this pre-Civil Rights era. It was also extremely difficult for African-American women to find work during this time, placing the financial buren solely on the father.
Vonnie McLoyd discusses in the book Child Development that black families are more likely to face poverty in America and the effects that poverty has on those children. McLoyd states that children that have faced poverty in their lives can have “impaired socioemotional functioning” (McLoyd 311). As a result from job loss creating parental stress, parents often become
Teenage parenthood is theorized as a social problem that involves a greater than average risk of being poor, unemployed and isolated. Studies have confirmed the association between socioeconomic disadvantage and teenage pregnancy and between social inequality and high teen pregnancy rates. Social exclusion is a contested term that goes beyond a concept of non-participation due to poverty of a concept of individuals or groups being shut out from society for reasons of multiple disadvantages, including: discrimination, chronic illnesses, geographical locations and cultural
We live in a complex, unpredictable world, filled with an array of family styles and personalities. Whether or not we recognize it, the family in which one is raised or currently resides plays a pivotal role in their development and opportunities. While we should not blame our circumstance on where we came from, it is crucial that we understand how our childhood influences why we are the way we are. One phenomenon that affects several families, particularly ones with low-income, is parentification. Parentification, also known as the role-reversal of a parent and a child, is not inherently harmful for a child, but it is important to look at the situation objectively and consider the risk-factors.
Fatherless America was written by David Blankenhorn. The state of the nation with families without fathers is surely becoming the norm. This article goes into detail about the research Mr. Blakenhorn, conducted to come to the conclusion that people who were born in the 1970’s are now have grown up to have households without fathers. As a result of fatherless homes, children are not helping the current society. The article also discusses the imagine of what fatherhood should be and how it has changed over the years.
Teen pregnancy is a communal problem, a family problem, and a personal problem all rolled into one. It frequently goes hand in hand with premarital sex. Problems come when the news needs to breach each parent’s party. After which, these impressions simply serve no purpose but to put them off, and deduce to mere nuisance to them when the truth of their situation slowly sinks in. How do they provide for the child if their parents cut them short financially?