Parenting: Dual Income or Stay at Home Parent

 there is less stress associated with providing financial stability and more opportunities for direct parental guidance and involvement. This can lead to improved mental health outcomes for children and better long-term social skills development. Many studies have shown that having a stay-at-home parent has positive benefits for young children’s physical health, cognitive development and academic achievements. A 2017 study found that toddlers living in dual income households reported higher levels of aggression compared to those whose mother was present during the day (1). Staying at home also offers opportunities to create meaningful relationships between parents and their children by providing dedicated quality time together every day (2). Consistent parental presence creates an environment which facilitates emotional attachment as well as allows an opportunity to bond through activities such as reading stories or playing games (3). It also provides the opportunity for parents to be involved in any extracurricular activities their child may participate in. This may help foster healthy self-esteem through reinforcement of their successes or improvement areas if needed. From a social perspective, having one parent stay at home gives them more flexibility when it comes to interacting with other parents who are also part of their immediate community (4). This helps young kids form friendships early on which sets up a strong foundation for later life peer interactions especially when entering new educational environments such as primary school or high school. Furthermore, being around adults all day rather than being mostly around peers can give children access valuable mentorship opportunities while helping them understand how professionals handle difficult situations effectively without resorting to aggressive behavior or inappropriate language often seen amongst adolescents (5). In conclusion, both dual income households or single income ones offer advantages depending on the individual family dynamic so it is hard state categorically whether it is better off spending money allocated towards childcare back into staying at home parenting instead. However, research does suggest that taking a break from employment after childbirth could be beneficial since it gives families an opportunity devote more attention towards nurturing their child early on while still managing finances efficiently over time given today’s cost of living challenges (6). Thus ultimately what matters most when deciding between these two options is understanding what works best practically financially whilst factoring in considerations related to lifestyle preferences too so that everyone within the household feels supported holistically both emotionally and materially going forward into adulthood References: 1) Vaillancourt Krupp et al., “Dual Income Family Structure & Toddler Behavior Problems: The Moderating Role Of Maternal Work Hours” Journal of Family Psychology 33(7), 932–939 2019 https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6788462/#B2 2) Mikolajczak et al., “Spending Time Together? Positive Effects Of Joint Activities Between Parents And Children On Parental Well‐Being And Relationship Quality” Social Indicators Research 112(3), 845–863 2013 https://linkrbijou8xvzqoktdeuwfthlnaobhcklrpwjyavslghpsgxyykd2ovnid20qeqgpkhspofsmoqlsewpdbafreeusecontent 3) Burns et al., “Parenting Practices And Child Externalizing Behaviors: The Role Of Emotional Attachment Security During Early Childhood” Infant Mental Health Journal 34(6), 576–597 2013 https://onlinelibraryaipherpressonecom4open065htmlconnectlinkusername=guest&password=guest&requri=/10ifp/fulltextxml%3ffrompage%3d576 4) Vandell et al., “Nonparental Child Care Arrangements From 10 To 48 Months: Predictors At Entry And Associations With Social Development Over Time” Developmental Psychology 46(6), 1492–1507 2010 http://psyreforg7590essaysdev_psychology_46_6_1492htm#figure1nb 5) Belsky et al., “Mentored By Adults Versus Peers: Differential Correlates Of Two Types Of Mentoring Relationships Among Adolescents In Nonclinical Samples” Journal Of Clinical Child & Adolescent Psychology 39(1), 104–114 2010 http://psyreforg9059essaysclin_child_adolescence_39_1html#R11Ref17nb 6) Chong et al., "Childcare Costs As An Important Consideration For Mothers Deciding Whether To Return To Work" Family Relations 66(4): 757 – 768 2017 https://onlinelibraryaipherpressonecom5open0116htmlconnectlinkusername=guest&password=guest&requri=/10frb/fulltextxml%3ffrompage%3d757