#12 Final Summary, Reaction, and Conclusion

Finally I have received all of my surveys back! I am excited to share that my hypothesis for the most part is correct! My prediction included that the results of my survey will support my hypothesis that children of an intact family preform better academically, maintain stronger relationships with their parents, and have stronger academic expectations placed on them by both themselves and their parents. Although the results do support my hypothesis, I noticed that majority of the teens who took the survey from both intact and divorced families do not ask either of their parents for academic assistance. I did not find this reaction exceptionally surprising because I, myself so not ask my parents for academic assistance very often either. Those teens from intact families who replied that they did ask for academic assistance received it and teens from divorced families who asked for academic assistance often did not, which further supports my hypothesis. I also noticed that teens of intact families have a higher average of academic pressure placed on them from their parents in comparison to teens of divorced families. The survey also shows that all the teens surveyed of intact families plan on attending college in the future and receiving at least a bachelors degree in their field of choice. In addition to the results above I noticed that on average children of intact families have stronger relationships with both of their parents than those of divorced families. After concluding my research analysis, the results of my survey support my hypothesis! I believe the topic of maintaining an intact marriage and family is extremely important and should be further explored and stressed in our society!

#11 Revised Summary/Plan/Update

I have continued with a paper survey to conduct the research analysis portion of my blog. So far I have received just about half of the surveys I have distributed back. I have noticed that majority of my hypothesis stands true. Although I have not fully concluded my research and do not want to fully give the results away, my hypothesis on the amount of academic assistance, amount of pressure to succeed, and plan for the future are mostly supported by my research thus far. I look forward to seeing how the remainder of my research comes back and observing if they continue to support my hypothesis.

#10 Strategy/Plan for Research

For the Research analysis portion of my blog assignment I have decided to conduct a paper survey, which will be distributed to 10 teenagers, male and female, ranging from the age of 15-17. Five of the recipients of the survey will be of an intact family and the remaining five will be of a divorced family. The survey primarily focuses on the academic benefits children will receive as being a member of an intact family in comparison to children of a divorced family.  I predict that the results of my survey will conclude children of an intact family preform better academically, maintain stronger relationships with their parents, and have stronger academic expectations placed on them by both themselves and their parents. 

#9 Research Analysis Method:Survey

For the research analysis portion of my blog I have decided to conduct a survey based on the information I have learned about my topic "Family and Marriage-Intact." I will distribute a series of questions to 5 teens of intact families and 5 teens of divorced families with their consent and compare the results. The survey will include questions such as rating the amount of assistance they receive from their parent(s) academically from 1 to 10, questions regarding their own motivation to preform better academically, and the expectations placed on them by their family. By giving this survey to children of both intact and divorced families I will be able to compare and observe if my research stands true and I will also be able to look at the advantages intact marriages and families have on the children involved.

#8 Marriage and Family: Intact

Throughout my blog I explored many websites, articles, and videos that spoke about the advantages and factors of my topic “Family and Marriage: In-tact.”  As I wrote my blog I primarily focused on the advantages that an intact marriage and family can have on all people involved including parents and children. Some of these advantages for children include fewer behavioral problems, better academic results, better emotional health and healthier romantic relationships in the future. After exploring these factors, the benefits are obvious but it is also important to keep in mind that for some families it may be more beneficial to not maintain an intact marriage for the parents and children involved. Although that may be the case for some families, I believe it is important to investigate these factors before considering a choice like that. The articles I have read describe the benefits maintaining an intact marriage has on the parents as well. For example, marries mothers are more inclined to create a better environment for their infants and are less likely to experience violence or abuse in their lives. Some of the effects being married have on fathers included better psychological well-being and more time spent at home with their children, which is also beneficial for the children.

The most important benefit an intact marriage and family can have that I have spoke about is the effect it has on children’s academic success. My third post explains the connection family structure and academic success have on each other. The post explains that children from intact families have higher test scores, academic expectations and are more likely to complete higher levels of education such as high school and college than children of “disrupted families.” Another benefit I explored in my later posts was the connection maintaining intact families might have on economic growth.  The article I read explained that placing a higher stress on intact marriages and families can potentially better our economy because of the benefits it provides for our society.

In conclusion, the importance of upholding an intact marriage and family is a topic that needs to be taken seriously and looked at attentively. As I mentioned in one of my later posts, a majority of U.S. teens do not live in intact families and this is a rising problem that we should work together to control. Intact marriages and families have many benefits for all parties involved and this rising issue needs to be brought to the attention of our society.

#7 Marriage, Family Structure, and Children's Educational Attainment

Marriage, Family Structure, and Children's Educational Attainment

Although I have spoke about the connection between marriage and family and children academics before, I believe it is an important topic that needs to be looked at closely. Topics that this article looks at are raw achievement, school behavior, and parental impact on education. The article explains that children from intact families have higher achievement scores, higher expectations for college, higher grades, and lower dropout rates than adolescents of single-parent and cohabiting families. Children from intact families maintain better school behavior than children from non-intact families. Adults in intact families place higher expectations on their children and are more likely to participate in the academic aspect of their children's lives.  The article explains the correlation between family income and intact families and states "Marriage is a major contributor to educational success and therefore to the economy as well. The more united parents are, the better their children do.
I agree with the statements in the article linked above and i believe each one can be supported through research. The idea that marriage and family intact could benefit our economy is something that should be studied and researched more than it is.  The multiple examples I listed above further support how important it is to maintain an intact marriage and family.

#6 Majority of U.S. Teens Don’t Live in Intact Families.

Majority of U.S. Teens Don’t Live in Intact Families

When I came across this article, it was the title that caught my attention. Although I was aware that maintaining an intact family and marriage is a growing issue, the numbers were alarming.  The article states "55 percent of 15-to-17-year-olds in America do not live in intact families." That is over half of teens in our country today! The article also states "... more than 40 percent of all children are born out of wedlock, and one in three children live in single-parent homes."  As I have spoke about multiple times before, the importance of maintaining an intact family and marriage  has many benefits for all members involved and is beneficial to society. The article above supports the many reasons how intact families are crucial and the impact they have made in our world.  We must work from the ground up and build a foundation in order to help resolve this major issue in our country.
"First Things First" is a program located in Richmond Virginia that "..provides education programs that encourage active fatherhood and strengthen marriage in Richmond's low-income communities." The program has three steps whose order is crucial! The steps are 1. graduate high school, 2. get married, 3. have kids.  These are three steps that help in avoiding poverty as a result of being a broken family and assist in improving intact families.  I believe this article was very interesting and informative.  It allowed me to look at some statistics and also described the importance of this topic and ways we can work to solving it.

#5 Is Family Structures a Key Factor in Economic Growth?

OK interim study: Family structure key factor in economic growth

In previous posts I have mentioned and spoke about many advantages intact families have on all people involved but I have yet to come across this advantage until today.  The article linked above speaks about family structure as a key factor to economic growth.  I found this article very interesting because it is the first time I have come across this contribution that intact families have on our society. Although I do not 100% agree with this idea that stresses on maintaining an intact family and marriage is a key factor to economic growth, I believe it is a factor that should be explored and looked at more in depth.  In the article, focused on Oklahoma City, describes the ideas of Patrick Fagan. He says that a desire for economic progress should promote "intact families" by policymakers in order to do so.  Fagan explains that intact families improve a wide range of social and economic outcomes. The article explains the decrease in the percentage of intact families and relates it to our steadily decreasing economy to display the connection between these two factors. A quote by Patrick Fagan that I found very interesting was "The single biggest program for reducing poverty is not a program- It's marriage." I personally believe that family structure has an effect on our economy but i do not believe it is the key factor to our economic growth.

#4 Taking Steps to Avoid Divorce

Keeping Your Marriage Intact- Ways to stop Divorce

Keeping your marriage intact is vital in any family and the video I watched, that is displayed above, lists a few steps and explanations for ways to stop divorce for couples in the future.  The video states that taking the option of divorce off the table, communication, and making it work are three steps that can be looked at ahead of time in a marriage.  The video explains that before going into a marriage the couple needs to agree that divorce is not an option.  They cannot continue in the marriage with the idea that if it doesn't work out they can just get a divorce because that is setting up the marriage for an option of failure already. When the video talks about communication it explains that "communication is key." A couple should be able to speak to each other about anything.  This is a factor that can be looked at before marriage because you need to build good communication in any step of a relationship.  Communication is crucial and will impact the marriage tremendously in the future if the couple cannot communicate with each other.  "Making it work"is the last step that the video talks about.  It explains that if a couple is willing to do anything to save their marriage it will most likely not fail.
Although I agree that in some cases it is more unhealthy to stay in a marriage then to leave I also think that taking steps to maintain your marriage with another person is beneficial for any family.  As I have spoke about in previous posts, there are many advantages for intact marriages and families for anyone involved.  I agree that the steps the video talks about in order to prevent a divorce may be helpful and should be considered prior to marriage.

#3 Connection Between Intact Marriages and Academic Success

Research shows Correlation Between Intact Marriages and Academic Success

The article I read regarding the connection between marriage and academic success speaks to the idea that the children of intact families preform better academically.  Research shows that children from intact families have higher math, science and reading test scores than children from "disrupted families."  Research also shows that children from intact families have higher academic expectations placed on them by their parents and supervision of their schoolwork as opposed to children from non-intact families.  The article explains some of the benefits for children in intact families such as finishing high school and college, the motivation to do well and not being expelled or suspended from school in comparison to children from disrupted families.

I chose this article because I think it further supports my last post on the benefits an intact marriage has on children in the world today.  I agree with the information given about the effects parent's marriage can have on children based on observation of people around me.  I also believe that these benefits and consequences should be looked into more by adults and parents because the actions of parents to not get married, separate, or divorce can have a profound effect on their children in the future.

#2 Benefits of Marriage and Family: In-Tact

Benefits of Family for Children and Adults

As my first blog post about the topic “Marriage and Family: In-Tact,” I thought I would begin by looking at the benefits of an intact family in comparison to that of a divorced or unmarried family. The article “Benefits of Family for Children and Adults” describes the multitude of advantages both children and adults receive as being a part of an intact family.  Some of the advantages include fewer behavioral problems, better results academically, and healthier romantic relationships in the future for children.  Although it is often thought to be beneficial for the couple involved to not to be married or to divorce for the well-being and happiness of the family members, these actions have a profound effect on all people involved.  The article speaks about the psychological effects being married can have on both the mother and the father.  The results of the studies taken show that married mothers are more inclined to create a better environment for their infants and are less likely to experience violence or abuse in their lives.  Some of the effects being married have on fathers included better psychological well-being and more time spent at home with their children, which is also beneficial for the children.  The benefits for children in an intact family are greater than those of the parents.  Some of the other advantages for children talked about in the article include better emotional health, a safer home environment, and the tendency to be more religious in adulthood.  Some connections made in the article that I found interesting were the connections between sexual activity and substance abuse in teens and their link to marriage and family.  The article describes that teens that have dinner with their family at least 5 times a week are less likely to be involved in substance abuse than teens who have dinner with their family only two nights a week.  The article also explained that teens in an intact family are less likely to be involved in sexual activity than teens that were not living with two married parents. I found this article very interesting and I believe that these are only some of the benefits for children and adults in an intact family.  The article talks more about the statistics of these benefits compared to children of unmarried or divorced parents and provide valid points for why intact marriages and families are positive for all members.

#1 Why "Marriage and Family: In-Tact?"

Hi my name is Holly Severino and the topic I chose to blog about is "Marriage and Family: In-Tact." This topic interested me because I want to learn more and research this subject throughout this semester.