Lone parent families

Question 1

David Morgan (1994)

Answer 1

He said that the rise in the amount of lone parent families was because of the change in the relationships between men and women.
He also said that the rise in the amount of lone parent families also caused families to become more fragmented.

Question 2

Alan and Crowe (2001)

Answer 2

They identified 2 different factors for the increase in lone parent families.
1) An increase in the amount of divorces and breakdowns of marriage.
2) An increase of unmarried women with children.
They argue that these trends and a rise in the amount of lone parent families are due to the rise in society’s acceptance of family diversity.

Question 3

Mark Brown (1995)

Answer 3

He says that the increase in the amount of lone parent families is because of the decline in the amount of “shotgun weddings.”
(A hurried wedding, or a wedding because the bride has become pregnant).
The increasing ability of a father or mother to have children outside of marriage has lead to an increase in the amount of lone parent families.
He also believes that the increase in the amount of lone parent families is also because of the growing acceptance of cohabitation.
If cohabitation fails and the two people become separate. Than if the two of them had children then one of the two partners would take the children and become a lone parent family.
It is easier to separate and become a lone parent family cohabitation compared to from divorce.