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Sociology

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Children as Caregivers: Parental and Parentified Children
Chester A. Winton, San Jose State University

ISBN-10: 0205327028
ISBN-13: 9780205327027

Publisher: Allyn & Bacon
Copyright: 2003
Format: Paper; 240 pp
Published: 09/03/2002

Suggested retail price: $58.40
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A sociological study of the diverse contexts in which children take on adult responsibilities in families and serve as caregivers for their siblings or parents.

  • Uses symbolic interaction theory to explore the roles of children who assume adult responsibilities in families because of drug or alcohol problems, family size, death of a parent, divorce, dual-worker households, military service, language barriers, incarceration, or physical and mental illness.
  • Explores the social construction of childhood and looks at parental and parentified children as a normative phenomena in a post-industrial world.
  • Includes many personal accounts taken from the author's qualitative research and clinical experience.
  • Concluding chapter discusses possible consequences for parental and parentified children across the life course.
  • The author is a sociologist and practicing family therapist who serves as an expert witness in child custody court cases.



Introduction.

Children as Caretakers of Others.

Child Caretaker Roles as Pathology.

Child Caretaker Roles as Deviance.

Child Caretaker Roles as Normative.

The Significance of Childrens Roles.

Organization of this Book.

Voices in this Book.

I. CONCEPTUALIZING CHILDREN AS CAREGIVERS.

1. A Theoretical Perspective for Studying Caregiver Children.

Symbolic Interaction Theory.

Using Symbolic Interactionism: Giving Meaning to Children.

2. Exploring the Minds of Pioneers.

Salvador Minuchin.

Ivan Boszormenyi-nagy.

Gregory Jurkovic.

Conceptualizing Caretaking Roles.

II. CONTEXTS FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF PARENTAL AND PARENTIFIED CHILDREN.

3. Chemical Dependency and Alcoholism.

Boundaries in Families of Alcoholics.

Norms in Families of Alcoholics.

Roles in Families of Alcoholics.

Consequences for the Future.

Families as Opportunity Structures.

Other Chemical Dependencies.

4. Parental Vacuums.

The Dual Worker Family.

5. Children of Divorce.

Factors Affecting the Adjustment of Children.

Financial Loss.

Latch-Key Children.

The Diminished Capacity to Parent.

Depression.

Parentified Caretakers.

Divorce as Gendered.

Launching Children.

The Boomerang Syndrome.

6. In the Absence of a Parent.

The Death of a Parent.

Military Families.

Incarceration of a Parent.

III. CONSEQUENCES FOR PARENTAL AND PARENTIFIED CHILDREN.

7. Conclusions.

Personality.

Reciprocal Caretaking in Families.

Questions.

References.

For Sociology of Family


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