This week I have thought about the family unit in the world today. From changes in marriage laws, effects on children based on parental conditions, and the gradual decline of the world birth and fertility rates. A question that keeps popping in my head is, what will the family unit look like in the future?.
The quality of living in the world is improving. What about the quality of family? Shouldn’t those be connected? Sadly, they aren’t. The U.S. fertility rate is now 1.8. The U.S. is one of many other countries that now have a rate lower than two. With the U.S. fertility rate decreasing and with those children being born more often into non-traditional families. What does the future have for those being born now and those yet to be born?
To the reader of this I don’t wish to be a depressing writer or being among the doomsday sayers. I wish to simply express my thoughts on current world trends and hope to connect the reader to what I’m learning through social science articles and research.
I watched a video about the decline of birth and fertility rates. The researchers pointed out a trend. When the economy is growing the family tends to not. They conducted many street interviews, and people stated that they felt as though it is not modern culture to have children. Modern culture and an improved economy are few factors that play into this decline.
In 1968 a book titled, “the Population Bomb” the author warned and cautioned about the dangers of overpopulation. Although these concerns are real, overpopulation is not something to worry about at this point of time. He claimed that early on that food and resources would begin to run out. Yet here we are in 2020 with very few countries having the fear of starvation, or the lack of resources being present.
The second factor striking at the family unit is that less children are being born in a home where they will be given more advantages in the future. The APA research used to compare the effects on children being raised and cared for by homosexual parents turns out to be a good use of evidence that a tradiotional family is the best way a child could get raised. Their ennistial claim was that there is no disadvantage compared to having traditional parents and homosexual parents. A good portion of the research they cited was actually comparing single mother homes rather than a traditional family. Thus providing eveidence that a Single mother home is actually on the same playing field as a homosexual parent home.
I also really enjoyed looking at the research findings on http://www.familystructurestudies.com/. They have gathered research results and put them side by side. This allows you to see percentages of certain topics based on the Family a child is brought up in. I have found this website very helpful when thinking about what is best for the future children of the world.
Overall the world is not a horrible place, but we do need to safeguard it and especially the people that are living on it. The Family is the basic unit of life. The family unit need not dissolve but it can become healthy and strong now and in the future.
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