I found it interesting that many studies have found that children are less affected by shared environment (such as same parents in the same home) than by non-shared environment (page 357). I found this surprising as I tend to see the repetitive happenings of ordinary life as significant in shaping how we develop. The question in my mind, can what happens outside the home, possibly have a greater impact on the child, than home life? Could this be most likely for children from bad home situations? I.e. One child from a dysfunctional family has a caring teacher in first grade and is motivated to excel and another child in the same family ends up with a teacher that doesn't know how to deal with his/her behavioral issues and therefore dislikes the child. My family hosted a fresh air boy for a number of consecutive years, he has come back to visit since he is an adult and is currently in college with dreams of being a lawyer. Even though he spent only a few weeks with us each summer, he says it gave him hope. I think outside influences may have greater potential for good or bad
in the disadvantaged child's life, whereas the child who is getting what
they need for healthy development from their parents, won't be as
greatly affected by outside influences.
Reading further, I found that current research gives more weight to parental influence.The earlier conclusion about parents not being a significant determining factor was based on the false assumption that children raised by the same parents share the same home environment. In my own experience my younger siblings don't have the same parents I did. I'm the second oldest in a family of 10 children. my parents were young and figuring out the whole parenting thing when I was a child. Dad used to give us piggy back rides to bed. My younger siblings got a lot fewer piggy back rides. When I was young, we always had to take naps Sunday afternoon. But the younger ones didn't need to as us older ones could watch them. As my Dad aged, he has become more easily irritated and less patient. I can't remember my father's tone of voice ever being irritated or frustrated with me as a child, and not because I was a little angel. But I have heard it with my youngest siblings. My mother personality hasn't changed much, she's just less reasonable and less involved.
My parents changing is not the only thing that is very different for the younger ones in my family. When I was a teenager, we changed church fellowships, essentially moving into a different sub-culture. My younger siblings don't have the experience of growing up in the other sub-culture that significantly shaped my beliefs and values. Surprisingly though 4 of us older ones think a lot alike - my oldest brother switched to the new sub-culture and is more like my younger siblings.
You pose some good questions in your first paragraph! I definitely agree that influences outside of the home could potentially have a greater impact on a child's development than their home life. I'm not sure if the outside influence is greater for children who grow up in unstable home environments. I think we are more likely to remember stories of kids who "break the mold" rather than those who don't. For instance, we like hearing of a child who grew up in an impoverished, broken household and eventually (after inspiration from sources outside the home) was able to go to Princeton on scholarship and pursue a high profile career. Few would be surprised if the same achievements were made by a child who belonged to the middle/upper class, grew up in a relatively "stable" household, and had two parents who went to college. Mainstream Americans love success stories. Though disadvantaged children have more to overcome than those who have a decent home life, I think outside influences (depending on how strong they are) can greatly influence both.
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