Filipino Child-rearing Patterns Filipino Child-rearing Patterns

Filipino Child-rearing Patterns

Parenthood

• Natural outcome of marriage• Child’s position in family is significant

– Give family its form and structure– Mag-asawa (couple)

Mag-anak (family – with child)– Links families of father and mother

• New set of duties, responsibilities, and obligations

• Strict disciplinarians more liberal

Value of Children

• Provide additional help to the family• Investment for social mobility• Source of joy and entertainment• Inspiration for parents to succeed and

lead a good moral life• Strengthen marital bond keeping family

intact• Bring good luck

Value of Children

• Masculinity highly valued in Filipino culture

• Perpetuate family name• Disvalues

– financial costs– problems in child discipline or when

child gets sick– emotional and physical stress– limits time spent by parents in

productive work or leisure

Parent in Socialization

Child and Youth Welfare Code 1976 obligation of parents to support the

child in the form of: Balanced diet Adequate clothing Sufficient shelter Proper Medical Attention Education

Parent in Socialization

Parents should give: Affection Companionship Understanding Moral guidance Discipline Religious instruction

Parent in Socialization

Parents are dedicated to child-rearing Genuine love and concern Community expectations and legal

prescription Child’s behavior is reflective of

his/her upbringing

Child-Rearing

• Follows societal norms and expectations• Style largely influenced by individual

experiences as a child• Vary with age, sex, birth order of child,

size of family and stage in family life cycle, social class, rural/urban residence

• Not static – change as society changes

Child-Rearing

• Generally (Ventura, 1985)– Nurturing, Affectionate– Indulgent, Supportive– Tendency to be overprotective– Enforcement of discipline becomes

stricter as child grows up.

Child-Rearing Patterns

• Parental strictness depends on site, occasion and birth order.

• Gender of child– Boys are allowed to stay out later– Girls expected to be at home most of

the time– Girls more restricted interaction with

opposite sex

Child-Rearing Patterns

• Adolescence stage passes unnoticed except for circumcision and first menstruation– Generally not a turbulent period

characterized by tension, rebellion, and confusion as in the West

Traditional Child-Rearing

• Restrictive pattern of parenting• Corporal punishment believed to be

effective – most common method used in instilling discipline (Mendez, et al. 1984)

• Mother assumes bulk of responsibility.

Traditional Child-Rearing

• Fathers tend to fall into procreator and dilettante types (Tan 1994)– Main role: provider and disciplinarian– Limited role in child-rearing

• Family – most influential social group in the child’s life

Modern Age Child-Rearing

• More permissive pattern of parenting• Mothers’ roles expanded beyond

usual domestic roles• Fathers more involved in child-

rearing– Nurturance as their primary

responsibility rather than the provider (Dalisay 1983)

Modern Age Child-Rearing

• Solo-parenthood more common• Child abuse is a growing concern• Peer group as role model and source

of values for the young

Pattern Changes

• Dependency independence• “generation gap”

– Parents view youth as undisciplined.– Children complain parents are

unreasonable, strict, and not adaptive change.

• Restrictive permissive

Pattern Changes

• Extreme control autonomy• Authoritarianism liberalism &

individuality• Adolescents more mobile than general

population (migration)

IMPLICATIONS OF CHANGE IN CHILD-REARING PATTERNS

Maternal Employment

Children of employed mothers were more egalitarian in their sex role concepts and perceived their mothers as more affectionate compared to the children of unemployed mothers (Santiago-dela Cruz, 1986: 29).

Maternal Employment

The more positive the mother feels about her working, the less negative impact her employment has on the child (Davidson and Moore, 1992: 444).

Maternal Employment

Children of dual-earning couples appear to express high degrees of confidence, resourcefulness, and independence, and instead of being deprived and neglected, demonstrate more positive social, psychological, and interpersonal characteristics than do the children of mothers who do not work outside the home (Lindsey, 1997:202).

Maternal Employment

Inconsistent, unsupportive, and unresponsive care fosters uncooperative and problematic behavior, irrespective of mother’s employment (Belsky cited in Eshleman, 1997:127).

Solo-Parenthood

Adolescents who grew up under the supervision of their father alone exhibited greater propensity towards some risk behaviors particularly drug use, commercial sex and premarital sex (Cruz, Laguna and Raymundo, 2001).

Migration

Añonuevo, Estrella Dizon and Añonuevo, Augustus, eds, (2002). Coming Home: Women, Migration and Reintegration Indifference and withdrawal of affection

from the biological mother to their surrogate mothers among pre-school children – no bonds established yet;

Children of OFWs have difficulty in making a decision since they had to consult their guardians which in turn may not be able to really decide and wait for the approval of the children’s parents.

Migration

Migrant children reported experiencing difficulties and longing for their absent parents, but they also acknowledged that they learned to be more independent in the process (Asis, Maruja M.B., 2000 “Migration and Families in Asia”).

The increasing urbanward mobility of the young population especially among the female has also led to greater independence and weakening parental control. Living away from home has emerged as the most important variable linked to premarital sex risks among Filipino young adults with a higher likelihood of engaging in such practice noted among those who have lived away from home (Umali, 1999; and Raymundo and Lusterio, 1996).

Permissiveness and Liberalism

In Filipino setting, adolescents who perceived their parents to hold liberal attitudes exhibited increased likelihood of engaging not only in premarital sex (Cruz, 2001; Raymundo and Lusterio, 1996) but in commercial sex as well as in smoking, drinking and drug use (Cruz, Laguna and Raymundo, 2001).

Child-rearing Social Change

Positive Effects Negative Effects

↓corporal punishment Independence, free-

thinking promoted ↑economic stability

= ↓insecurities

= ↓deprivation

= healthier family

More aggressive behavior can get out of control

↑delinquency ↑premarital relations ↑influence of peers on

child (peer pressure) ↑stress at work and at

home = ↑infections and other harmful diseases

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