Social Development of Children Living with Mentally Ill Parents - Essay Example

Running Head: Parents with Mental Illness Social Development of Children Living with Mentally Ill Parents A Research Proposal of Professor Date of Submission Chapter 1 Introduction The children of parents with persistent or chronic mental illness have significantly enlarged risk of psychosocial problems in them. This risk is not solely attributable to the hereditary effects involved but also attributable to the fact that persistent or chronic mental illness is related with abnormal parenting, family conflict, defective communication and disabled parent-child relationship (Daniel, Wassell, & Campbell, 2002). Parent’s mental illness could be a form of stress or pressure on the child. Children in these cases may show a range of difficulties from minor deviations in social development and adjustment to evident mental disorder (Ackerson, 2003a). Parent-child relationships are frequently distressed by the mental illness of a parent. Uysal, Hibbard, Robillard, Pappadopulos, and Jaffe (1998 as cited in Nicholson, Biebel, Kinden, Henry, & Stier, 2004) discovered that parents with mental disorder were less nurturing; less focused on motivating social skill development, cleanliness, and obedience; and were commonly less involved with their children’s social being than parents without mental illness. Such parenting deteriorations could be related with child problem behavior (Nicholson et al., 2004). Conceptual Framework In order to situate the research questions in theoretical perspective, several major components of social development framework: the interdependencies of social lives; and the function of human agency in the process of making decision (Reutlinger, 2009), will be considered. A fundamental principle of the social development framework is that the lives of people are interconnected (Reutlinger, 2009). The interrelated lives of parents and children are specifically significant due to the fact that even though children commonly have little say in the decision making of the lives of their parents, the family define the living situations of children considerably by affecting the levels of different social capital resources accessible to children within the family unit (Schmier, 2004). Even though the lives of children are influenced by an array of social institutions external to the family, such as peers, neighborhoods, and schools, the fates and opportunities of family members are strongly interconnected, and families keep hold of a major role in the social development of children (Schmier, 2004). Family arrangement, the prerequisites of abilities and skills by adult family members and the possible rivalry for resources from other family members therefore all facilitate in the construction of the domestic setting in which children are raised (Schmier, 2004). As outlined by Coleman’s (1990 as cited in Aldridge & Becker, 2003) theoretical perspective, families furnish social resources for their members, and this capital affect children’s development. Adult family members provide social resources through their relationships with their children. Parents who are actively involved in the lives of their children on a daily basis and have built firm ties of warmth and trust build up social capital, which consequently enables the diffusion of social capital abilities from one generation to the next (Aldridge & Becker, 2003). Problem Statement Nicholson and associates (2001) emphasized that mental illness of parents does not independently ascertain negative implications for children, but rather it is the relationship of the mental illness of parents with other factors that will reinforce resilience. For example, parents with mental illness frequently experience coexisting problems with interpersonal relationships, as well as marital problems and family troubles, social seclusion and also financial strains. As a result, families distressed by parental mental illness are divergent; parents will encounter various forms of mental disorder, levels of disorder persistence and acuteness, and their children will hence need different forms and levels of support or assistance (Nicholson et al., 2001). Still, children living with mentally ill parents exhibit higher incidences of social developmental problems compared with children living with parents with no mental illness. An investigation of the key effects of the presence of mentally ill parents in the family on the social development of children, particularly on children’s social relationships, self-esteem, and social identity will be presented in this study. Purpose This study has three purposes: to identify the effects of the presence of mentally ill parents in the family on children’s (1) social relationships, (2) self-esteem, (3) and social identity. Research Question(s) or Hypothesis This study on the effect of the presence of mentally ill parents in the family on children will be carried out to contribute to existing body of knowledge concerning the issue. It will attempt to answer the following research questions: 1) How does having a mentally ill parent affect a child’s social relationships? 2) How does having a mentally ill parent affect a child’s self-esteem? 3) How do children with a mentally ill parent perceive their own social identities? The study hypothesized that the presence of mentally ill parents in the family negatively affects children’s social relationships, self-esteem, and their own perception their social identity. Furthermore, outcomes for children would be positively associated to an accommodating and supportive family setting, viewed social assistance from others, and awareness about a parent’s mental illness. Need for the Study There has been a great deal of research in the recent decade to explore the occurrence and effects of burden of care on families (Aldridge & Becker, 2003) However, as Valiakalayil, Paulson, and Tibb (2004) emphasize, a great deal of the research has been focused on adult members providing care. Not enough research has been carried out on children and adolescents in vulnerable families. There has been limited empirical evidence on the effects of burden of care on children especially on how this is affecting children’s own health, their coping ability and their psychosocial adjustment (Valiakalayil et al., 2004). This study will thus contribute to the lessening of the negative effects on children’s social development of the presence of mentally ill parents. This study will therefore be of significance not only to mental health workers but also to educators and policymakers. Delimitations The characteristics of the randomly selected sample population will be controlled to include only nominal demographic information, such as age, gender and ethnic affiliation for the children, and age and educational attainment for mentally ill parents. Data analysis will be purely qualitative hence no statistical measurement will be used to verify the correlation between parental mental illness and children’s social development. Time may be limited and resources may be inadequate to complete this study in its highest standard. Limitations of the Study The following limitations are inherent in this study: 1) Personal biases, such as those of the interviewer and selected primary social workers, will lessen the reliability of the results of the study. 2) The sample population may be inadequate to represent a general body of knowledge about the assumed negative effects of parental mental illness on the social development of their children. 3) The study will only investigate the effects of commonly diagnosed mental illness such as depression and bipolar disorder to children’s social development. 4) The study will use a purely qualitative methodology hence there will be no statistical validity to validate the findings. Assumptions This study assumes that: 1) parents with mental illness have pessimistic and unhelpful parenting behaviors and practices; 2) children living with mentally ill parents confront difficulties in building healthy social relationships and productive social activities; 3) and, social workers are helpful in alleviating the negative effects of parental mental illness on the social development of their children. Definition of Terms This study will use the terms ‘mentally ill parents’ and ‘parents with mental illness’ interchangeably without any offensive intentions or meanings. Nevertheless, the following terms are defined to help readers in understanding more easily how they are applied in the proposed study. Filicide- “the act of killing one’s own son or daughter” (Free Online Dictionary, 2009, http://www.thefreedictionary.com/filicide) Neonaticide- “infanticide in the 24 hours following birth” (Hoffman, 2003) Psychopathology- “The study of the origin, development, and manifestations of mental or behavioral disorders” (Free Online Dictionary, 2009, http://www.thefreedictionary.com/psychopathology) Psychosocial- “of or relating to processes or factors that are both social and psychological in origin” (Free Online Dictionary, 2009, http://www.thefreedictionary.com/psychosocial) Self-esteem- “respect for or a favorable opinion of oneself” (Free Online Dictionary, 2009, http://www.thefreedictionary.com/self-esteem) Social capital- “the network of social connections that exist between people, and their shared values and norms of behavior, which enable and encourage mutually advantageous social cooperation” (Free Online Dictionary, 2009, http://www.thefreedictionary.com/social+capital) Social development- “social development pursues an alternative approach focusing on the empowerment and autonomy of actors, and also taking account of the structural obstacles that confront them as they shape their daily lives in the sense of learning to develop their selves” (Reutlinger, 2009, para 1) Social identity- "A social psychological theory of identity formulation that privileges the role of large group identities in forming individuals concepts of self" (Calhoun, 2003, 34). Chapter II Review of Related Literature In spite of the deficiency in research on parents with mental illness, a number of earlier studies have analyzed how mental disorder of parents might result in children’s social development problems. A number of investigations indicate that mental disorder can and does have a considerable impact on children (Aldridge & Becker, 2003). Commonly, children of mentally ill parents may have more social, behavior, and cognitive problems. They also have a higher vulnerability to mental health problems (Ackerson, 2003b). The parenting difficulties of parents with mental illness also vary by both the identification and persistence and acuteness of the illness. Depressed parents are more prone to commit neonaticide and filicide (Hoffman, 2003). They also have a tendency to be more pessimistic, less motivating and more disciplinary in their parenting. Antisocial behavior, anxiety disorders, and personality disorder are more widespread among parents who maltreat their children (Schmier, 2004). Children of parents with bipolar disorder have a tendency to have a greater rate of emotional disorder than parents with other mental disorders. In all instances, the harmful impacts differ by the persistence and acuteness of the disorder, with heightened deteriorations and acuteness of symptoms associated with bigger difficulties for children’s social development (Daniel et.al., 2002). Nevertheless, more current investigations argue the effects of mentally ill parents on children are less perfect and lessened by a number of other variables (Schmier, 2004). Oyserman, Bybee, Mowbray and MacFarlane (1998 as cited in Oyserman et al., 2002) discovered numerous mentally ill women are capable of parenting their children successfully. But in this investigation, they did classify mental disorder as a major risk variable for children. There is a heightened risk for physical and sexual exploitation for children of parents with mental illness (Oyserman et al., 2002). Nevertheless, it remains vague whether this vulnerability is because of parents committing such maltreatment or because of the heightened susceptibility of a child whose parents are inattentive to his/her needs. This vulnerability creates another obstacle to these children’s social development. They are most likely to develop antisocial behavior or build unhealthy social relationships (Ackerson, 2003b). A number of factors mediate this vulnerability including the intervention of a caregiver, the acuteness of the disorder and/or existence of support system or network (Ackerson, 2003b). The parenting risk for parents with mental illness may be due to other variables such as poverty, lack of education and social supports. No underlying connections have been ascertained, though all of these variables are related to maternal mental disorder generally. One cannot assume automatically that mental illness results in poor parenting or vulnerable children (Daniel et al., 2002). Earlier research indicates a specific diagnosis or the existence of psychopathology may explain or predict implications for the children’s social development (Ackerson, 2003a). Still, Sands (1995 as cited in Aldridge & Becker, 2003) proposes that parenting quality, despite of the presence of mental disorder, offers an improved predictor of consequences than either of these provisions. The relationship between specific diagnosis and parenting proves challenging. One cannot construct cause and effect assumption of how one does influence the other. A current investigation of the empirical evidence on the effect of severe mental disorder on parenting revealed that mentally ill mothers have considerably less satisfactory parenting abilities and behaviors than mothers with no mental disorder (Oyserman et al., 2000). In particular, in parenting their children, mentally ill mothers have been discovered to be less affectively available, less responsive, less optimistic, and less involved. They are also less motivating; less loving and receptive; and less capable of discerning their own needs from those of their children than are ‘normal’ mothers (Oyserman et al., 2000). Sandler (2001 as cited in Aldridge & Becker, 2003) has offered a theoretical model of the features of difficulty that add to problem implications in childhood; they involve risks to gratifying essential needs for security and biological reliability, sense of worth, sense of personal discipline, social interconnectedness, and achieving social developmental capabilities. Masten et al. (1990 as cited in Daniel et al., 2002) illustrated how living with mentally ill parents might influence social, emotional and physical support given to children and consequently increase the possibility that these children encounter aspects of social adversity. Moreover, Oyserman et al. (2000) summed up empirical evidence for a mediational framework in which maternal diagnosis and indications influence encouraging parenting behaviors that then influence children’s social development. Aside from illustrating parenting difficulties, investigation on mentally ill mothers has often studied the connections of parenting practices and behavior: Diagnosis is certainly the variable studied most commonly as a possible determinant, with depression the diagnosis most commonly studied. The isolation and pessimism related with depression have been assumed to create anxious and confused social development, to lessen the nurturing behavior of a mother toward her child, or to bring about negligent parenting when mothers abandon their parental obligations (Nicholson et al., 2004). Comparisons between depressed and non-depressed mothers have been discovered to have considerably more difficulties in affection and in unhealthy relationships with their children. They also have a tendency to be more penalizing toward their children, as well as unpredictable and non-interactive. All of these poor parenting styles in turn negatively affect the social development of children living with mentally ill parents (Ackerson, 2003b). Chapter III Methodology Selection of Participants The data in this study will be obtained from a sample population that will be determined from the case records of Department of Children and Families. Child protection cases that are still in progress and all social workers employed in the organization as current child protection workers will be drawn out. From those case files, 10 sample cases will be randomly selected. The social workers working on the sample cases will be interviewed about the nature and problem of the selected cases and their own opinion and knowledge of the issue. Development of Instrument The data will be collected from interviews with current child protection workers of the Department of Children and Families. It incorporates demographic details for the primary social worker of each sample case with generally nominal level information such as age, gender and ethnic affiliation. The interviews present nominal information about the diagnoses, symptoms and social support and assistance received for social workers of sample cases. The qualitative information will be description responses from short interviews with the sample child social workers. If needed, a female interviewer with an extensive background in social work and experience interviewing mentally ill individuals will oversee the interview to all respondents. Consent to make use of human participants will be requested from the University’s Institutional Review Board, which will review the procedure to guarantee safety of all research participants and to adhere to state and federal guidelines concerning research on vulnerable people. Data Analysis The qualitative data will be coded and described in accordance to the issues that surface from the process of data coding and analysis. Descriptive information on all factors will be created. Relationships among parent’s mental illness and children’s social development, particularly their social relationships, self-esteem, and social identity, will be examined. Descriptive information will be provided on the psychosocial outcomes of children living with mentally ill parents. Analyses will be hierarchical, integrating factors in four organized chunks: (1) constants for nominal child demographics, such as age, gender, and racial affiliation; (2) parental demographics, such as age and educational attainment; (3) parental mental health history, such as substance abuse history; (4) and separation of the parent and the child before the age of 13. This structure will enable the verification of the role of parent-child separations, constants for demographics and parental mental health history; the role of parental mental health factors, constants for demographics of parent and child; and the influence of parental demographics, constants for child demographics. Time Schedule Proposal Development Task December January Writing of initial research proposal Complete detailed review of related literature Conducting Research Task January February Conduct Research for Study (Gathering of Materials and References Needed) Analyse Data from Research Writing the Dissertation Task February March April Writing of Introduction Proof Reading Writing of the Review of Related Literature Proof Reading Writing of the Analysis Section Proof Reading Wrting of Conclusions and Recommendations Proof Reading Submit completed draft Revisions Binding of the Dissertation References Ackerson, B. (2003a). Coping with the dual demands of severe mental illness and parenting: The parents perspective. Families in Society , 109-118. Ackerson, B. (2003b). Parents with serious and persistent mental illness: Issues in assessment and services. Social Work , 187-194. Aldridge, J. & Becker, S. (2003). Children Caring for Parents with Mental Illness: Perspectives of Young Carers, Parents and Professionals. Bristol, England: Policy Press. Calhoun, C. (2002). Social Identity Theory. American Journal of Orthopsychiatry , 419-427. Daniel, B., Wassell, S., Campbell, I. (2002). Assessing and Promoting Resilience in Vulnerable Children. London: Jessica Kingsley. Hoffman, V. D. (2003). Preventing the Tragedy of Neonatacide. Holistic Nursing Practice , 223-228. Nicholson, J., Biebel, K., Kinden, B., Henry, A., & Stier, L. (2004). Critical issues for parents with mental illness and their families. Centre for Mental Health Services , http://www.mental heath.Org/publications/all/pubs/ . Oyserman, D., Mowbray, C.T., Allen-Meares, P., & Firminger, K. (2000). Parenting among mothers with a serious mental illness. American Journal of Orthopsychiatry , 296-315. Oyserman, D., Bybee, D., Mowbray, C.T., & MacFarlane, P. (2002). Positive parenting among African American mothers with a serious mental illness. Journal of Marriage and the Family , 65-77. Reutlinger, C. (2009). Social Development. Social Work & Society (1). Schmier, P. M. (2004). Parents with Mental Illness. Social Work , 522+. Valiakalayil, A., Paulson, L.A., & Tibb, P. (2004). Burden in adolescent children of parents with schizophrenia. Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology , 528-535. Read More