Abstract This paper discusses the concerns regarding unsafe sex in the United States, particularly among school-aged children. It discusses the problems of sexually transmitted diseases (STD) and ways to avoid contracting them. The paper then suggests solutions to the problem of unsafe sex and discusses the justifications for these solutions.
Table of Contents:
Solution to the Problem
Justification of the Solution
From the Paper "The possibility that birth control in schools might lower the rate of teen pregnancy and STDs is reason enough to implement systems in schools. If birth control were available in schools, more teenagers would use protection when exploring their sexuality. Birth control should be available in high schools simply because most teenagers will not talk to their parents about it.
"Many parents do not even realize that their children are interested in sexual activity. These parents may fight birth control in schools, as they may perceive it as encouragement. However, schools should make an effort to help parents recognize the real situation. To reduce STD's and pregnancies, teenagers should be able to obtain birth control from somewhere. Schools provide a safe place to do so."
Tags: pregnancy, STD, condom, sexuality, birth, control
Abstract This paper examines the transformation of the traditional American family and the impact of the non-traditional family in today's world. The paper explains that the non-traditional family is called a "blended family" and is more prevalent today than thirty years ago because divorce rates are rising and remarriages are much more common. The paper notes that significant changes are occurring in the marriage patterns in the United States, as individuals are postponing marriage until later in life and more people are choosing not to get married. The paper also points out that the area where change is most apparent centers around patterns of child-bearing. The paper then discusses the various types of non-traditional families. The paper contends that , for all types of non-traditional families, the changes will only come from shifts in cultural prejudices and this kind of change will be slow, but there are signs that some preliminary movement is beginning to take place.
From the Paper "The image of the American family looks and functions very differently than families of the past few decades. Men and women raised in the 1960's and 1970's when programs such as "Ozzie and Harriet" and "Father Knows Best" exemplify the average family, are likely to find themselves in situations that have changed dramatically. Research claims that many family structures are common: single-parent families, remarried couples, unmarried couples, step families, foster families, multi-generational families, extended families, and the doubling up of two families within the same home. Marriage, divorce, and patterns of childbirth are some of the factors that have contributed to these significant changing families. With these changes come the possibility of remarriage and the creation of new families which bring together parents and children without blood ties."
Tags: divorce, remarriage, cultural, prejudice, child-bearing, population
Abstract This paper explains that research indicates that adolescents of alcoholic parents are prone to developing abnormal behavior due to environmental, cognitive and biological influences. The author points out that mental disorders, such as depression or anxiety, are common side effects of adolescents who are subjected to an environment where the parents are alcoholics. The paper states that children from these homes often demonstrate behavioral problems, such as stealing and fighting, and often are diagnosed as having conduct disorders. The author underscores that children of alcoholic parents are raised in an environment where alcohol consumption compensates for the lack of social skills. The paper states that these children suffer academically because of the parent's lack of support for their child at school. The author stresses the importance of identifying protective factors and educating society to reduce the hazards of abnormal behavior in children of alcoholic parents.
From the Paper "Along with environmental factors, children of alcoholics can suffer from cognitive misperceptions and dichotomous thinking. For example, when children experience feelings of guilt due to their parents drinking and assume that it is their fault, this is a form of illogical and dichotomous thinking. The children develop illogical thought patterns and self-blame primarily due to their parents not taking responsibility for their drinking, which will eventually lead to abnormal behaviors by the child."
Abstract This paper addresses childhood onset schizophrenia (COS) and the controversy surrounding the causes as well as the diagnostic distinction between childhood onset schizophrenia and the more known disorder schizophrenia, which is prevalent in adults. For the purposes of providing a differential diagnosis and a definitive clinical picture of COS, the paper examines the disorder as diagnosed prior to the age of thirteen. The paper points out that, until recently, the term childhood schizophrenia was given to a highly diverse mix of children with very little in common other than a profound and chronic disturbance during early childhood. The paper concludes that, although much work has been written about childhood onset schizophrenia, there are still many issues subject to debate.
From the Paper "The assessment of diagnosing childhood onset schizophrenia is a very delicate matter and all areas of the child's life have to come into consideration. Because of the severity of schizophrenia and the elements it shares with other psychotic mood disorders, it is very important to perform thorough assessment prior to diagnosis. This assessment involves structured interviews, symptom scales, and diagnostic decision trees like those found in the DSM-IV-TR manual. The individuals that should be interviewed include the child, their parents, teachers, siblings and even their peers. A clear distinction is necessary to be determined so that proper action can be taken. The interview with parents and children must be thorough and include information on recent events, changes in mental state and functioning, developmental history and, as we have seen before family history. Information on family history is significant as the rate of schizophrenia is increased among first degree relatives (Gonthier, 2004)."
Abstract This paper explains that the State Child Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) is a program formulated and implemented by both federal and state governments to assist poor working families, who cannot afford private health insurance. The paper then points out SCHIP is not immune to various issues that threaten its efficacy as a federal and state program. The paper then goes on to discusses these issues involving SCHIP, together with proposals for the enhancement of the current policy. Moreover, the paper investigates prospects for the future of SCHIP, specifically those involving fiscal and economic factors that would determine the capacity of SCHIP to help federal and state governments provide health care assistance. The paper includes charts and an annotated bibliography.
Table of Contents:
Abstract
Statement and Significance of the Health Policy
Related Issues and Consequences, Including Groups Supporting/Opposing the Policy
Proposals for Enhancing, Changing, or Eliminating the Health Policy
Prospects for the Future of the Health Policy
Author's Position While Critiquing the Health Policy
From the Paper "The importance of public health care coverage becomes more apparent when the situation is viewed from the perspective of low-income children who lack private coverage. These children are shown to have persistently lagged behind children with public or private coverage when their status of health is assessed based on any measure of access to care. Since poor children have no access to preventive and primary health care, there is great and apparent disparity in the children's health status."
Abstract The paper discusses the reasons put forth to explain why boys underachieve in school. The paper specifically looks at the following explanations: the feminising of the curriculum, the low expectations boys have of themselves, the crisis of masculinity, and the Marxist theory, which sees the education system as repressing working class children. The paper concludes with the opinion that it not gender that is the main factor for boys' underachievement, but class. An annotated bibliography is included with the paper.
From the Paper "In the academic year 2004/05, 62 per cent of girls achieved five or more GCSE grades A* to C, compared to only 52 per cent of boys. Many people would suggest that this sort of data represents the crisis that is 'male underachievement'. Male underachievement is the failure of boys to do as well in the education system as their female counterparts. And yet the 'crisis' only a few decades ago was that of female underachievement. So what has happened to account for this shift in achievement?"
Abstract This paper defines and examines poverty in contemporary American society, particularly among single mothers. It discusses why single mothers often find themselves below the poverty line and examines the effects of this situation on them and their children. The paper then looks at structural changes in the American economy and the types of jobs that have been created by these changes.
Table of Contents:
Introduction
Single Mothers and Poverty
Structural Changes in the American Economy
Conclusion
From the Paper "Although it is clear that state benefits and menial work provides enough money to cover the most basic needs, single mothers and their children cannot live a productive and healthy life. As many studies have pointed out, women tend to identify themselves through their children, and often deprive themselves in order to give a better life to their children. Living in impoverished conditions, every aspect of their lives is affected by their situation. Not only having an extremely detrimental effect on their health, an important factor of poverty is the terrible social marginalization and isolation that many single mothers face. Social policy that does not attempt to diminish poverty and social exclusion significantly contributes to the mental, emotional, and physical ill health of mothers who are trying to raise their families on welfare."
Abstract This paper presents an overview of the causes of suicide, how to recognize the symptoms of desire for suicide, how to prevent it, and how it relates to depression overall. The paper is written in the first person as a letter (fictional).
From the Paper "I could attribute this as a real stressor in his life, so I continued to read on. The next criterion I read about was the fact that the symptoms must show themselves within three months of the identified stressor. Also the situational context in which the stressor occurs and intrapersonal factors relating to the affected person may change the degree to which the disorder manifests itself."
Abstract An overview of the history, beliefs, and practices of the Mormon Church, including an analysis of family structure within the religion.
From the Paper "The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, often referred to as the Mormon Church, is a uniquely American religion, as reflected by its basic myths and early history... Although Mormons were originally ostracized and persecuted for their unique views, they have come to embrace and epitomize American culture and values. Latter-day Saints value the Puritan ideals of hard work, self-reliance, and families."
Abstract This paper argues that the American government has a responsibility to protect children from the ill effects of television advertising. The author examines four different parenting styles: neglecting, indulgent, authoritarian, and authoritative that influence the amount of protection children receive from the home.
From the Paper "Advertising is a powerful force in American culture,existing to sell products and services. In 1750 BC Hammurabi made it a crime, punishable by death to sell anything to children without first obtaining power of attorney (American Academy of Pediatrics, 1995 p.1). Although extreme, Hammurabi acknowledged the ill-effects advertising can have on innocent children. In recent years, selling to children has become a standard business practice via television. What is television? It delivers a message that is made up of two channels of information (audio and video) that are continuous, not under control by the user (Lang, 2000 p.51)."
Tags: media, advertsing, children, parent, regulation, responsibility, television
Abstract This paper discusses the issue of child labor and outworking. The author looks at the ethical arguments that have surfaced and the implications that this type of labor proposes for governments, industries as well as citizens with special reference to Australia. The author also proposes alternatives for the future.
From the Paper "Some say that child labor and outworking is, ?modern day slavery in the real sense.? (Kailash Satyarthi; The Australian, 27/08/98). People turn to these two forms of employment for diverse reasons and there are many ethical arguments involved in these types of labor. Consumers should be aware of the issues of child labor and outworkers, because they can have some implications for consumers, not only overseas in less developed countries, but also for Australians. There are many different paths that can be taken towards helping to solve the ethical disputes of outworkers and child labor, although some approaches gain better results than others."
Tags: child, consumer, employment, ethical, homeworker, labour, outworker, slavery, work
Abstract This paper discusses the correlation between alcoholism or drug use, and child abuse. The author highlights the physiological, psychological and emotional harm child abuse causes and raises some ideas for prevention action initiative to tackle the child abuse phenomenon. The author concludes that prevention education, support services and self-help groups are necessary for child abuse prevention.
From the Paper "Research indicates that there are some disturbing parallels between the children of alcoholics and drug addicts and victims of maltreatment. According to an article on childabuse.com, 40% of reported child maltreatment cases involve the use of alcohol or other drugs. ?This suggests that of the 1.2 million confirmed victims of child maltreatment, an estimated 480,000 children are mistreated each year by a caretaker with alcohol or other drug problems.? (childabuse.com) Consequences of both substance abuse and child abuse may include physical stress, psychological stress, and disruption if normal behavioral development. For instance, both victims of maltreatment and children of alcoholics/ habitual drug users, feel guilty and responsible for their parent's problem. Both groups of children often have self-esteem issues, fear of failure, and suffer from clinical depression and anxiety. In addition, these emotional effects predicate other behaviors in adolescence and adulthood such as criminal behavior, delinquency, and other deviant behavior. Even though there has not been a great deal of evidence to substantiate this hypothesis, it is thought that exposure to violence in both alcohol abusing and child-maltreating households increases the likelihood that the children will commit and be recipients of acts of violence. (National Institute of Justice, Online)"
Abstract This paper presents an in-depth examination of an individual case concerning being an Adult Child of an Alcoholic (ACOA). The writer of this paper details the history and the family life of the case study as well as the ways the condition of being an ACOA manifests itself for the individual. The writer also examines several source documents of studies and research that has been conducted regarding this situation.
From the Paper ?The client is a 44-year-old female who is the single parent of a teenage son. She and her son live alone in a duplex in a suburb of a large city. She works a full time job and her son attends the local high school. The client is in the seventh stage of the life cycle. This stage is the stage in which the healthy adult can look outside oneself and care for others. It is also the stage that lasts from the ages of 40-65 according to Erik Erikson. Erikson suggested that at this stage in the life cycle the parents might need their children as much as their children need them. In the case of an ACOA this seems to become particularity true for some.?
Abstract The author challenges the thesis presented by Judith Harris, in her book "The Nurture Assumption," that divorce does not have a long-term affect on children. The author first reviews Ms. Harris' book, and then, using research by other people in the field, such as Judith Wallerstein, refutes her theories on children and divorce. Some of the topics discussed include the parent-child relationship, family structure, economic affects of divorce and single-parent families.
From the Paper "Harris holds the view that living in a nice neighborhood the children of single parents do as much better as other kids. Children of single parents are no more likely to drop out of school or get pregnant than the children of two-parent households, she writes, as long as they stay in the same middle-class neighborhoods. Wallerstein and her co-authors do not agree. The authors write: "Although many people no longer believe the myth that children always benefit from a divorce that makes parents happier, it continues to exert subtle, unconscious influences on how we think about divorce and our reactions to it. It has encouraged parents to expect that their children will approve their decision." According to the authors this attitude makes it easy for divorced parents to concentrate of their search for new lovers and jobs devoting less time to their children and not properly preparing them for the effects of divorce. The children pay the price."
Abstract This is a detailed paper that combines the results from 15 studies to determine how stepmothers and stepdaughters tend to interact, as well as what factors indicate the likelihood of successful or unsuccessful blended family adjustment.
From the Paper "Research on blended families reveals that the stepmother-stepdaughter relationship has a superimposed emotional factor not present in the natural parent-child relationship, or any other blended dyad. This superimposed factor is the existence of the "wicked stepmother" myth throughout oral history. A quick look at traditional fairy tales provides a grim picture of the abusive, jealous stepmother and her long-suffering stepdaughter. Women can be seen as good surrogate mothers, but only when referred to as something other than ?stepmother.? For example, the term "foster mother" or "adoptive mother" is associated with women's unselfish, generous desires to care for orphaned children; however the term "stepmother" has connotations of neglect and abhorrence."
