Licensing Parents

Name: Licensing Parents
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ISBN: 9780738206219

Can We Prevent Child Abuse And Neglect?

By: Jack C. Westman

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Paperback Published: 2nd November 2001
ISBN: 9780738206219
Number Of Pages: 347

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In 1991, the National Commission on Children called attention to the fact that a small but significant number of parents are failing to fulfill their basic childrearing responsibilities. Dr. Jack C. Westman, an esteemed child advocate, systematically connects the damage caused to children by the failings of those parents to our society's educational, health, safety, and economic problems. A small fraction of the population has reduced public safety to unacceptable levels of danger and sapped the productivity of the nation. These dangerous and dependent individuals are increasing in numbers that drain public funds and erode the productivity of our workforce.

Introduction	p. 1
The Eroding Quality of Life in the United States	p. 7
The Decline of Education, Health, Safety, and the Economy	p. 12
Why Have We Not "Drawn the Line"?	p. 23
The Proximate Cause: Incompetent Parenting	p. 27
Defining Competent Parenting	p. 28
Defining Incompetent Parenting	p. 30
The Relationship between Poverty and Incompetent Parenting	p. 34
The Benefits to Society of Competent Parenting	p. 41
The Role of Affectionate Attachment Bonds in Citizenship	p. 42
Competent Parenting Prevents Illness	p. 45
Competent Parenting Prevents Social Problems	p. 48
Obstacles to Forming Affectionate Attachment Bonds	p. 50
The Effects of Incompetent Parenting	p. 53
Incompetent Parenting and Habitual Criminals	p. 55
Incompetent Parenting and Welfare Dependency	p. 69
Incompetent Parenting and Homeless Children	p. 73
Incompetent Parenting and Public Health	p. 74
Incompetent Parenting and National Productivity	p. 78
The Costs of Incompetent Parenting	p. 83
The Costs of Habitual Criminals	p. 85
The Costs of Intergenerational Welfare Dependency	p. 91
The Costs of Child Abuse and Neglect Services	p. 92
Losses in National Productivity	p. 93
The Total Cost of Incompetent Parenting	p. 95
Prioritizing Risks to Our Society	p. 96
The Tolerance of Incompetent Parenting	p. 99
The Impact of Individualism on Social Values	p. 100
The Impact of Individualism on Social Structures	p. 106
The Disparagement of Parenting	p. 111
Society's Fragmented Reactions to Social Problems	p. 116
The Political Crisis--Recoil Response	p. 118
The Elevated Threshold of Deviancy	p. 120
Juvenile Ageism	p. 123
The Dynamics of Prejudice and Discrimination	p. 125
Elder Ageism	p. 126
The Forms of Juvenile Ageism	p. 127
Areas of Progress	p. 141
An Antidote to Juvenile Ageism: Children's Civil Rights	p. 145
Authentic Child Advocacy	p. 146
A Child's Right to Competent Parenting	p. 149
The Civil Rights of Children	p. 150
The Legal Rights of Children	p. 153
Cultural Expectations of Parents and Children	p. 159
A Parent's Right to Be Competent	p. 163
Parenthood as a Developmental Process	p. 165
The Developmental Readiness for Parenthood	p. 166
The Dilemma of Adolescent Pregnancy	p. 174
The Dilemma of Adolescent Parenthood	p. 180
Social Policy and Teenage Parents	p. 191
Social Policy and Parenting	p. 196
A New Way of Thinking about Children	p. 199
"Little Picture" Thinking	p. 200
"Big Picture" Thinking	p. 203
Social Values versus Cultural Values	p. 206
Supporting Competent Parenting as a National Policy	p. 210
The Societal Goal of Competent Citizenship	p. 212
A National Parenting Policy	p. 215
The Concept of Parent Licensure	p. 218
A Multisystem Approach to Improving Parental Competence	p. 220
The Precedents for Licensing Parents	p. 228
Childless and Childrearing Marriages	p. 236
Procedures for Licensing Parents	p. 238
Alternatives to Licensing Parents	p. 244
The Rationale for Licensing Parents	p. 245
Arguments against Licensing Parents	p. 249
The Imposition of Majority Standards	p. 251
Violating the Sacred Parent--Child Relationship	p. 252
Licensing Would Foster Parent Blaming	p. 254
Restricting the Right of Adults to Freedom of Action	p. 255
Licensing Would Accompany Financial Child Support	p. 256
Fear of According Adult Rights to Children	p. 257
Enforcing Conformity in Childrearing	p. 258
The Political Rejection of the Family	p. 259
The Maturing Influence of Childrearing	p. 260
Objectionable Prior Restraint	p. 261
The Fallibility of Prediction and Education	p. 262
The Unfeasibility of Administration	p. 263
Licensing Would Replace Helping Parents	p. 264
Insufficient Adoption Opportunities	p. 265
Research Is Inconclusive	p. 267
Education, Training, and Clinical Services Are Sufficient	p. 268
Favored Legal Treatment Is Undesirable	p. 269
Society's Need for Incompetence	p. 271
Drastic Changes in Public Policy Do Not Occur	p. 272
Are These Arguments Obstacles or Hurdles?	p. 273
Conclusion: Will the United States Value Parenting?	p. 275
The Social Costs of Incompetent Parenting	p. 276
Our Society Must Value Parenting	p. 278
Social Welfare Is Not Enough	p. 280
Parenting Can Be Self-Fulfilling	p. 281
The United States Needs a National Parenting Policy	p. 282
Global Leadership in Human Rights for Children	p. 284
Appendix	p. 287
Notes	p. 289
Index	p. 337
Table of Contents provided by Syndetics. All Rights Reserved.

ISBN: 9780738206219
ISBN-10: 0738206210
Audience: Professional
Format: Paperback
Language: English
Number Of Pages: 347
Published: 2nd November 2001
Country of Publication: US
Dimensions (cm): 21.08 x 14.07 x 2.39
Weight (kg): 0.47
Edition Number: 1