Attitudes Toward Never-Married Single Mothers and Fathers: Does Gender Matter?

DeJean, Sarah L.; McGeorge, Christi R.; Carlson, Thomas Stone

doi:10.1080/08952833.2012.648121

Cited by 35 publications

(45 citation statements)

References 29 publications

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“…This finding also fits with the findings of two existing studies that examined the attitudes toward never-married single mothers and fathers and came to similar conclusions that participants' perceptions of these two groups varied primarily by the gender of the single parent and that gender is important to consider when researching and evaluating single parents (DeJean et al, 2012;Haire & McGeorge, 2012). Additionally, this finding highlights contextual influences that are important for family therapists to consider when working with single parents and their families.…”

Section: Gender As a Stronger Influence Than Single Parenting Statussupporting

confidence: 88%

“…Additionally, if therapists were better aware of the perceived societal strengths of single parents this might make visible the competent and impressive parenting that many single parents provide. Finally, researchers have documented that negative societal beliefs about single parents appear to vary by gender (Bennett & Jamieson, 1999;DeJean et al, 2012;Haire & McGeorge, 2012). Thus, we postulated that the positive perceptions about single mothers and fathers may differ as well.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 93%

“…While negative societal perceptions of single parents as a group have been well-documented, the research also suggests that these perceptions vary by the gender of the single parent (Bennett & Jamieson, 1999;Bryan et al, 1986;Haire & McGeorge, 2012;Hilton & Devall, 1998). In particular, researchers argue that single mothers are viewed more negatively than single fathers (DeJean et al, 2012;Ganong et al, 1988;Hilton, Desrochers, & Devall, 2001;Jarrett, 1996). Additionally, never-married single mothers are at an even greater disadvantage due to the socio-historical context and structure of everyday life, which continues to disadvantage women (Baber & Allen, 1992).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 94%

“…Much of the literature that exists on single parents has focused on perceived deficits or negative attributes of these parents (DeJean, McGeorge, & Carlson, 2012;Richards & Schmiege, 1993). For example, Bennett and Jamieson (1999) found that never-married single parents were viewed more negatively than married parents.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 98%

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Positive Attributes of Never-Married Single Mothers and Fathers: Why Gender Matters and Applications for Family Therapists

Maier

McGeorge

2014

Journal of Feminist Family Therapy

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Utilizing a feminist framework, this study examined societal perceptions of strengths of never-married custodial single mothers and fathers. Qualitative responses were gathered from 873 participants. The results of the thematic analysis suggested that the positive attributes that participants assign to never-married single mothers and fathers appeared to be more strongly influenced by gender than by single parent status. The results further suggested that participants' level of expectations was much lower for single fathers when compared with single mothers and that, overall, single mothers were held to a higher standard by participants. These findings have significant clinical implications for family therapists.

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Section: Gender As a Stronger Influence Than Single Parenting Statussupporting

confidence: 88%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 93%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 94%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 98%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Positive Attributes of Never-Married Single Mothers and Fathers: Why Gender Matters and Applications for Family Therapists

Maier

McGeorge

2014

Journal of Feminist Family Therapy

Self Cite

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“…According to the most recent U.S. census, about 1.96 million households were headed by single fathers, and almost 10.32 million households were headed by single mothers (Vespa, Lewis, & Kreider, 2013). Single mothers may be more harshly evaluated than single fathers, with evidence indicating single fathers are viewed as noble or admirable while single mothers are viewed as having failed at providing an intact family environment for their children (Dejean, McGeorge, & Carlson, 2012). Very little research has addressed attitudes toward single adoptive parents of different sexes.…”

Section: Parent Sexmentioning

confidence: 99%

Expectations of Male and Female Adoptive Parents of Different Marital Status and Sexual Orientation

Sohr-Preston¹,

Kliebert²,

Moreno³

et al. 2017

IJPS

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Adults in the U.S. (undergraduate college students and adults recruited online) read vignettes about a fictional individual seeking to adopt an infant. Based on random assignment, participants read versions in which the prospective adoptive parent described was either an implied male or female and single, married to someone of the opposite sex, or married to someone of the same sex. After reading the vignettes, participants rated their expectations of the prospective parent's ability to parent and their perceptions of the prospective parent's personal characteristics. Female participants reported significantly (p < .05) higher expectations of general ability to parent and perceived higher responsibility, greater likeability, and less selfishness. Both sexes endorsed significantly lower anticipation of ability to parent and less responsibility when the prospective parent was designated as single or in a same-sex marriage. Same-sex prospective parents were additionally rated as significantly higher in immorality. Prospective fathers were rated as less likeable than prospective mothers and participants approved less of their plan to adopt. The authors discuss findings as relevant to bias favoring traditional families headed by a man and a woman with the wife taking the lead in the transition to parenthood.

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Singlehood

Laplant

2016

Encyclopedia of Family Studies

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Single adults make up a substantial part of the population, with half of Americans currently identifying as single. There are three categories of singles, those who never marry, who are single through divorce, and who are single through widowhood. Many singles in the United States face stigma and pressure to become married and follow the ideal life course. Remaining single also plays a significant role in identity for many single individuals. There are some advantages to being single such as skill development and self‐reliance and also some disadvantages such as decreased sexual satisfaction, and for never married singles there is less integration into the community.

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Attitudes Toward Never-Married Single Mothers and Fathers: Does Gender Matter?

Cited by 35 publications

References 29 publications

Positive Attributes of Never-Married Single Mothers and Fathers: Why Gender Matters and Applications for Family Therapists

Positive Attributes of Never-Married Single Mothers and Fathers: Why Gender Matters and Applications for Family Therapists

Expectations of Male and Female Adoptive Parents of Different Marital Status and Sexual Orientation

Singlehood

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