Children's Needs â Parenting Capacity - Digital Education Resource ...
Children's Needs â Parenting Capacity - Digital Education Resource ... Children's Needs â Parenting Capacity - Digital Education Resource ...
How mental illness, learning disability, substance misuse anddomestic violence affect parenting capacity 69Depressed mothers may see themselves as inferior parents, less competent andadequate than non-depressed parents (see for example Reupert and Maybery2007). Similar negative self-perceptions have been found for women who aresubjected to domestic violence (Humphreys and Stanley 2006), those withan alcohol or drug problem (Hogan and Higgins 2001), and parents with alearning disability (Cleaver and Nicholson 2007).You just sit down and put needles in your arm, you don’t care ... always tryingto get money and wondering where you’ll get your next hit. It’s hard beingwith them crying in your face and you’re sick, you’re roaring and shouting atthem... it’s not fair on the kids. She used to go to me ma’s a lot, she was happierwith her.(Drug-using mother of 9-year-old girl, quoted in Hogan and Higgins 2001,p.11)Parental problems may lead parents to have a distorted view of their children.For example, in cases of maternal depression children may be perceived ashaving behaviour problems which are not substantiated by objective measures(Fergusson et al. 1995). In other circumstances, a particular child may beblamed for the parent’s current distress, or alternatively, one child may beseen as a saviour and main source of solace (for mental illness see for exampleRutter 1990; for domestic violence see Emery 1982).A distorted view of the child can affect the parents’ capacity to provide adequateguidance and boundaries. Initial assessments carried out by social workers showedthat in 68% of cases parents with learning disabilities did not provide adequateguidance and boundaries for their children, this applied to over half of cases (54%)where the child lived with a substance-misusing parent and a similar proportionof cases (51%) where the child lived with domestic violence 3 (Cleaver et al. 2007;Cleaver and Nicholson 2007).Control of emotionsDepression can make parents irritable and angry with children, and depressedmothers are less likely to be emotionally available and affectionate; parents withschizophrenia may have unusual or inappropriate affective responses to their children(Reupert and Maybery 2007). For example, a significant minority of mothers withpost-partum psychosis expressed delusions that related directly to their infants,typically that the child was possessed, had special powers, or was medically unwell(Margison and Brockington 1982; Kumar et al. 1995).3The statistics provided are the result of a re-analysis of data gathered for two research studies: Cleaver andNicholson 2007 and Cleaver et al. 2007. The research did not cover children living with mentally ill parents and,consequently, such detailed information is not available.
70 Children’s Needs – Parenting CapacityA personality and borderline personality disorder also influences the abilityto control emotions. Parents may experience inappropriate or intense anger orproblems in controlling anger (Hill et al. 2005). Mothers with borderline personalitydisorder have been shown to have difficulty with sensitive and empathetic parenting(Newman et al. 2007). The impulsivity and rapid and extreme swings of moodcan be very difficult for children to understand and may leave many in a state ofperpetual vigilance. Extreme mood swings are particularly evident during periodsof stress such as when parents have to deal with fractious infants or difficultadolescents (Norton and Dolan 1996). Research suggests that compared to othergroups, children of mothers with borderline personality disorder showed a higherprevalence of emotional and behavioural problems and lower self-esteem (Barnowet al. 2006).The intake of drugs such as cocaine and crack or excessive amounts of alcohol canalso produce violent mood swings from, for example, caring, loving and entertainingto violent, argumentative and withdrawn. As a consequence, parents with a drink ordrug problem may behave in an inconsistent and frightening manner towards theirchildren (see for example ChildLine 1997).When parents are preoccupied with their own feelings they may experiencegreater difficulty in responding to their child’s needs, cues are missed and the parentappears withdrawn and disengaged (Martins and Gaffan 2000). Research suggeststhat the severity and chronicity of the issue affecting the parent is associated withits impact on parenting capacity (see for example Rogosch et al. 1992 for mentalillness; Forrester 2000 for substance misuse; Booth and Booth 1996 for learningdisability). In a quarter of cases initial assessments carried out by social workersfound substance misuse affected parents’ capacity to provide children with emotionalwarmth, a factor in 30% of cases where children lived with domestic violence, andin a fifth of cases involving a parent with a learning disability 4 (Cleaver et al. 2007;Cleaver and Nicholson 2007).Neglect of physical needsThe effects of domestic violence, problem drinking or drug use, mental illness orlearning disability may mean that parents neglect their own and their children’sphysical needs.Greg (aged 11 years with a learning disability) was not always cleaned aftersoiling himself, all three children were losing weight and there was often no foodin the house.(Social worker’s report about a single mother with a learning disability andher three children, quoted in Cleaver and Nicholson 2007, p.77)4The statistics provided are the result of a re-analysis of data gathered for two research studies: Cleaver andNicholson 2007 and Cleaver et al. 2007. The research did not cover children living with mentally ill parents and,consequently, such detailed information is not available.
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How mental illness, learning disability, substance misuse anddomestic violence affect parenting capacity 69Depressed mothers may see themselves as inferior parents, less competent andadequate than non-depressed parents (see for example Reupert and Maybery2007). Similar negative self-perceptions have been found for women who aresubjected to domestic violence (Humphreys and Stanley 2006), those withan alcohol or drug problem (Hogan and Higgins 2001), and parents with alearning disability (Cleaver and Nicholson 2007).You just sit down and put needles in your arm, you don’t care ... always tryingto get money and wondering where you’ll get your next hit. It’s hard beingwith them crying in your face and you’re sick, you’re roaring and shouting atthem... it’s not fair on the kids. She used to go to me ma’s a lot, she was happierwith her.(Drug-using mother of 9-year-old girl, quoted in Hogan and Higgins 2001,p.11)Parental problems may lead parents to have a distorted view of their children.For example, in cases of maternal depression children may be perceived ashaving behaviour problems which are not substantiated by objective measures(Fergusson et al. 1995). In other circumstances, a particular child may beblamed for the parent’s current distress, or alternatively, one child may beseen as a saviour and main source of solace (for mental illness see for exampleRutter 1990; for domestic violence see Emery 1982).A distorted view of the child can affect the parents’ capacity to provide adequateguidance and boundaries. Initial assessments carried out by social workers showedthat in 68% of cases parents with learning disabilities did not provide adequateguidance and boundaries for their children, this applied to over half of cases (54%)where the child lived with a substance-misusing parent and a similar proportionof cases (51%) where the child lived with domestic violence 3 (Cleaver et al. 2007;Cleaver and Nicholson 2007).Control of emotionsDepression can make parents irritable and angry with children, and depressedmothers are less likely to be emotionally available and affectionate; parents withschizophrenia may have unusual or inappropriate affective responses to their children(Reupert and Maybery 2007). For example, a significant minority of mothers withpost-partum psychosis expressed delusions that related directly to their infants,typically that the child was possessed, had special powers, or was medically unwell(Margison and Brockington 1982; Kumar et al. 1995).3The statistics provided are the result of a re-analysis of data gathered for two research studies: Cleaver andNicholson 2007 and Cleaver et al. 2007. The research did not cover children living with mentally ill parents and,consequently, such detailed information is not available.
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