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7SOCIAL-CULTURAL IDEAS OF FAMILY VALUES OF TEENAGERS BROUGHT UP IN ORPHANAGE OR FOSTER HOME
Abstract
The paper deals with the problems connected with formation of teenagers' family roles and values on the basis of ideas of modern men and women, what further influences on socialization and personal development. The author states the results of research work with children, brought up in orphanages or foster homes. The offered practical recommendations will help in rendering qualified psychological assistance to orphan children and supporting experts dealing with problems of such children.
Keywords
social-pedagogical situation of development, orphan children, orphanage, foster home, sex-role identification, masculinity, femininity
AUTHOR
Tatyana Bobkova
PhD in Psychology, Associate Professor Department of Economy and Management Samara State Economic University, branch in Syzran Syzran, Russia tsbobkova@mail.ru
Nowadays modern society endures a number of difficulties and changes. The special place among them is taken by a problem of psycho-emotional, spiritual and moral health of younger generation, which is in great need in finding spiritual and moral, psychosocial reference points of personal development. Sex-role and personal development of children and teenagers needs optimization and psychological and pedagogical support. There is an obvious tendency in transformation of social roles of men and women, which negatively reflects on child-parental relations, education, role structure of a family, and respectively on sexual identification of children that complicates an adequate choice of sex-role position by a child. However children brought up out of a family have broken process of adequate perception of sex-role standard orientations and stereotypes of behavior caused by public education and a number of specific factors that in future may cause difficulties in starting own family and its preservation (Bobkova, Vinogradova, 2010).
Development of a child out of a family goes on a special way, what forms the peculiar features of character, behavior and a personality different from children of usual families. The reasons are covered in deficiency of communication and maternal deprivation (Dubrovina, Lisina, 1982). For successful adaptation and integration into society, a child has to be brought up in a family, where from early age he establishes his sex identification, intensively appropriating behavioral forms, interests, values of the sex through imitation to representatives of the same sex. Mental and personal features of orphan children, specific social situation of development set a task of searching and developing such forms of psychological work, which would allow to create conditions necessary for positive personal development and socialization.
Recently there is a tendency in renouncing public education abroad and in our country that leads to emergence of such form of upbringing and education as foster and patronage homes. Despite of attempts of the state to arrange most orphan children in replacing families within the policy of residential care de-institualization, number of
children coming to orphanages does not decrease, but on the contrary increases every year.
Appeal to the research subject is caused by a number of objective contradictions: last period of children stay in orphanage, questions of personal and social maturity have paramount value; problems connected with sex, psychosexual behavior and development come to the forefront; simultaneous existence of opposite standards generates a conflict system of requirements and can negatively influence on formation of adequate ideas of femininity and masculinity.
To clarify the nature of teenagers' ideas about male and female qualities, features of attitude towards people, woman, man and family roles (father, mother, husband, wife), other personal positions we used a technique of free descriptions "The way I imagine modern men and women" (authors M.I. Lisina, I.V. Dubrovina, A.G. Ruzskaya, etc., 1990). Data processing was conducted by a content analysis method with allocation of the most significant categories and frequencies of their occurrence in experimental group and comparison groups. Instruction paid special attention to necessity of describing ordinary people. The analysis of judgments about images of men and women allowed to establish the following seven topics with varying degree of significant features (positive or negative) from teenagers' point of view or forms of male and female behavior: features of appearance; traits of character reflecting attitude towards people; features of attitude towards woman or man; business qualities; intellectual features, interests; traditional understanding of masculinity or femininity; qualities connected with matrimonial and parental roles of men and women (Dubrovina, Lisina, 1982). The analysis of experimental material goes in relation to both contents of criterion and its comparative importance among other criteria.
Much more often orphan or foster home teenagers pointed out the category "Features of attitude towards men and women, stereotypes". It means that images of men and women for children are less differentiated and more stereotypic; first of all, due to the lack of family and, as a result, impossibility to observe a variety of social roles. Perhaps, teenagers had negative experience in a blood family, which had left a negative mark on their ideas of sex relationship of floors.
Significantly less often teenagers singled out the category "Character and features of attitude towards people irrespective to their sex". It in many respects is a consequence of the first conclusion as weak extent of gender images differentiation conducts weak differentiation of personal qualities and traits. The proximity of ranks and values of comparative frequencies is observed among teenagers with families that speaks about positive influence of family upbringing.
Also pupils statistically seldom single out the category "Work, business qualities". The proximity of ranks and values of comparative frequencies is observed among teenagers from foster homes. In our opinion, the subject of professional sphere is indistinct for pupils, career guidance is poorly formed, many teenagers have no accurate vital prospect, plans for future. The category "Family, children, child-parental relations" appeared statistically less significant for children from orphanage. It is connected with existence of mainly negative and poor experience of life in a family. And if teenagers from families have a positive stereotype supported by both parents and teachers that in the future the child needs to start a family, pupils of orphanage practically have no such stereotype.
Considerably more often orphan teenagers gave negative characteristics of men and women and the characteristic "from the return" when they describe what way should not a man or a woman behave (I.V. Dubrovina) (Dubrovina, Lisina, 1982). Two opposite samples (positive and negative) of masculinity-femininity are distinctly allocated, their contents vary depending on children from different categories of families and orphan children. Teenagers from foster and usual homes much less often name the category.
Orphan pupils singled out the category "Traditional understanding of masculinity/femininity", which included gender neutral statements, which are a consequence of gender undifferentiation of teenagers representations.
The category "Erudition, interests, intellectual features" is much more often singled out by teenagers from usual families. It is possible to explain by the fact that for the children deprived of parental guardianship, including the ones, who are brought up in conditions of a foster home, intelligence, knowledge, education do not play a big role for a survival, successful socialization and entry into adult life, while for ordinary school students this factor is one of key one (Bobkova, Vinogradova, 2010).
The qualitative analysis of teenagers' compositions in different social and pedagogical situations of development showed more concrete similarities and differences in descriptions of modern men and women. It should be noted that teenagers from usual and foster homes give more complete descriptions reflecting ideas of identity features of men and women. Teenagers from orphanage more often give incomplete descriptions, containing the description only of one image, or uncertain descriptions, in which there is a certain sexless person, or the descriptions, which are not revealing representations of children. In compositions of orphan teenagers the masculinity/femininity has bipolar character, we mentioned it above. In some moments similarity of views of teenagers from foster homes and orphans is observed (last negative experience of accommodation in a blood family), and also there is a coincidence of opinions to children from usual families (positive influence of family education in a foster home). The qualitative analysis of teenagers' descriptions allowed to allocate the big range of positive male and female qualities, in comparison with the negative standards, which are not depending on experience of accommodation in a foster home (the interrelation is not traced). The understanding of masculinity and femininity by teenagers from foster homes and orphanage is characterized by insufficient role range: mother, daughter, father, son. Men and women are presented by children from families (foster and usual) as educated, erudite persons with business qualities, various interests, externally attractive, well-groomed, loving their nearest and dearest, careful parents, sympathetic people: "A man has to look elegantly, fashionably, not really brightly, he wears clothes depending on a situation, and is always tidy"; "A woman always has to be beautiful, adhere to one style in clothes and a hairdress, but thus not to be afraid to experiment". Negative teenagers' images have a certain circle of problems connected with non-performance of household chores, existence of a harmful drinking habit and tobacco smoking, ignorance, roughness, lack of interests, absence of hobbies, etc. Let's give an example: "A man is a head of a family, thus he should not be a tyrant, offend his wife and children, drink or smoke"; "A woman should not be afraid of excess affairs". It should be noted that negative characteristics do not dominate in descriptions of teenagers, nevertheless, they testify the possible hidden personal, intra family problems. The use in descriptions of a particle "not" has no versatile substantial character at teenagers of three groups. Characterizing a modern woman, boys from usual families write: "should not give a lot of time to work", "should not keep thinking of work". Teenagers from orphanage put other sense: "A woman and a man should not say rude words, drink, smoke, fight, should not deceive and offend others"; "a man should not be shaggy, his clothes should not be soiled"; "a woman has to stand straight and not swing hands when talks, conversation has to be good without any rude words". Statements of orphan teenagers are more infantile and are characterized by a lack of language devices and negative past experience (Bobkova, 2012). Due to the low level of verbal intelligence, insufficiency of lexicon pupils cannot list and present more widely the main qualities of a person independently from sex, such characteristics are kind, good, polite, quiet (very frequent), kind to people, helpful.
The content of criterion "features of intelligence, width and variety of interests" is most presented in descriptions of teenagers from usual families and reflects the general
age regularity: from allocation of separate abilities, interests (sport, art, embroidery, etc.) to generalized characteristics (clever, erudite, educated, widely-read, etc.). Statements of girls are brighter, saturated in ideas of courage standards. We were interested in compositions of girls from foster homes with masculine traits of a personality. There is an example of descriptions: "A person has to look adequately, to have strong character. A woman is a good hostess, but she has to work and be able to earn money". Judging by contents of statements of feminine and androgenic girls: "A man has to maintain a family, and a woman has to be a housewife"; "A man is strong and clever, he is engaged in business, a woman has to be not only a housewife, but also to work as a psychologist, doctor or tutor, she has a good education, she is clever, kind, independent and she always she spends some time to herself". There are distinctions in sex-role ideas of masculinity/femininity, stereotypes and preferences.
The analysis of compositions showed that family-household topic is more attractive to many teenagers of all categories. We should note the absence of negative statements of teenagers from foster homes to family life or to an opposite sex, in comparison with orphan children. Adverse experience of life in a family with blood parents, especially at early age, leaves the mark for the rest of child's life, which often transfers educational model from a family of parents to own children. The negative psychological past prevents an orphan child to look forward positively, disturbs him from time to time (Dubrovina, Lisina, 1982). It found reflection in descriptions of teenagers living in foster homes for one to four years: "A man has to work, bring money to family, support it, and a wife has to be a housewife, clean the house, and raise children".
Few statements of teenagers with the unsuccessful past were heard concerning joint education of children and carrying out free time, mutual understanding and support in difficult situations, relationship of wife and husband, existence of such word as 'love' is mentioned in single cases. Generally the emphasis of orphan children is placed on an obligation of wife, husband, mother and father at home, careful care of children; it is seldom told about relationship with children, for example, "parents have to take care of children, feed, dress, keep their order, sometimes flog them, if they do not obey". In certain cases, teenagers from foster homes idealize family images (husband, wife, father, mother) allocating them with the characteristics corresponding to sex. In general descriptions of an ideal family are real, many children quite ripened argue on an ideal family.
Images of boys and girls, who are brought up in different families (foster or usual), frequently coincide about an image of a man. Boys have almost identical nature of criterion "family man" in description both men and women. Examinees more stated duties of men and women in a family than expressed the relation to it. Thus, the criterion of an assessment of features of identity of men and women in a family and household relations undergoes considerable changes. It is about the qualities, which characterize man's attitude towards a woman and vice versa. Let's note that it is rather significant for girls. According to girls opinion, men have to "look after a girl and protect her", "respect women", "be indulgent, attentive, noble in relations with woman", "appreciate her weakness". In full consent with these representations there are traditional ideas of girls about courage: a man has to be "strong, courageous, persistent, proud, a knight". Examined girl designated woman's attitude towards a man the following way: a woman has to "understand a man", "be the faithful wife" and "care of him".
Orphan teenagers has a tendency to androgyny in ideas about a mother. Teenage boys of different families have more androgenic image of mother (Bobkova, Vinogradova, 2010). It should be noted that all teenagers independently on sexual differences and social environment describe a mother with the same qualities as a father: careful, understanding, kind, responsible, attentive, devote much time to education of children. Pupils pay attention to such mother's qualities as economic, hardworking and at the same
time kind and strict. Similar statements they give about a father. The image of a father in representations of all teenagers is androgenic, except orphan girls: they describe a father as more masculine person, who is similar to an image of an ideal man: strong, courageous, brave, clever, responsible, resolute, honest, one-woman man. Girls from orphanage do not see sex-role functions of a mother, woman in a family and society, they live on full state providing and do not know about tasks, which they should solve in future, they are not ready for practical execution of female roles in a family (Bobkova, 2012). Orphan children hardly differentiate roles of husband, father, wife, mother and give similar characteristics (careful, hardworking, economic, kind). In comparison with children from families, pupils' images of mother and father are primary. Teenagers from usual and foster homes give more detailed descriptions of actions of men and women, than their characteristics. In answers there are more positive statements, than negative ones in comparison with orphan children.
The analysis of compositions showed that almost only one sphere of activity, in which ideas of men and women images are formed, is the sphere of relationship with an opposite sex. Teenagers' life experience is connected only with child's position and therefore their ideas about masculinity/femininity, perhaps, correspond to adults views. Meanwhile it is known that at this age the system of intersexual relationship is intensively formed (Kagan, 1987). However, as the data showed, ideas of teenagers about ideal qualities of men and women for this relationship are mainly connected with concept of friendship, without sex identity.
Summarizing the above results, it is possible to tell that collision of two polar images of a man and woman, negative and positive, opposite standards of family relationship can promote formation of distorted representations about masculinity/femininity and respectively generates conflict system of family requirements. Results of researches made by I.V Dubrovina, M.I. Lisina, A.G. Ruzskaya (1990) testified it (Dubrovina, Lisina, 1982). The practical importance of the research consists in possibility to use the obtained data for improvement of conditions of social-pedagogical situation of teenagers development without parental support in aspect of formation of adequate sex-role identification, for development recommendations for teachers and psychologists on formation adequate sexual identification of teenagers without parental support.
REFERENCES
1. Bobkova, T. S. & Vinogradova, G. A. (2010) "Peculiarity of sexual consciousness of teenagers with a different social situation of development", News of the Samara scientific center of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Issue 2, Volume 12, No. 3, Samara, Russian Academy of Sciences.
2. Bobkova, T. S. (2012) "Psychological-pedagogic conditions of sexual education of children without parental support", Materials VII of the International scientific and practical conference "The higher arts education of the XXI century: problems and prospects", Samara, PGSGA.
3. Dubrovina, I. V. & Lisina, M. I. (1982) "Features of mental development of children in a family and out of it", Age features of mental development of children, Moscow.
4. Kagan, V. E. (1987) "Family and sex-role installations of teenagers", Psychology Questions, No. 2, p. 36.
5. Mukhina, V. S. (2006) "Age psychology", Development Phenomenology, 10th ed., revised and added, Moscow, Academy, p. 608.
