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5 - The construction of parenting and its context

from Part I - Basic issues

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  09 August 2009

By
Michael Göpfert ,
Jeni Webster  and
Julia Nelki
Edited by
Michael Göpfert ,
Jeni Webster  and
Mary V. Seeman
Michael Göpfert
Affiliation:
Webb House Democratic Therapeutic Community, Crewe
Jeni Webster
Affiliation:
5 Boroughs Partnership, Warrington
Mary V. Seeman
Affiliation:
University of Toronto
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Summary

Introduction

This chapter aims to clarify the term ‘parenting’ as a social role within a culturally determined social construction. It will provide tools for the formulation of parenting and for the understanding of the complex interface between psychiatric disorder and parenting in the context of mental health services and of family/community. This will establish the ground against which the gestalt of the professional task of performing a parenting assessment is considered (see Göpfert et al., Chapter 7) and against which some of the effects of parental psychiatric disorder on children can be understood.

The chapter will use the role-relationship paradigm (Horowitz et al., 1995; Muran, 2002; Nye, 1976; Nye & Berardo, 1981; Ryle & Kerr, 2002) as a framework for understanding parenting across the spectrum of care. The role-relationship model facilitates an understanding of both the internal/personal and the social aspects of the parenting role, their interface with one another and with the role of the helping professional. Early role experiences are internalized and form the backbone of personality development. This construct overlaps with the concept of internal working models that comes from attachment theory (see Adshead et al., Chapter 15). Roles and role relationships are useful for understanding the interface between a social role, such as parenting, and the personality of the person enacting the role. Services are not currently designed to deal with such complexity and tend to provide a service that either addresses parenting problems or mental illness problems.

Keywords

mental health servicesparent-child relationshipparentingpsychiatric disorderrole-relationship paradigmsocial construction
Type
Chapter
Information
Parental Psychiatric Disorder
Distressed Parents and their Families
 , pp. 62 - 84
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2004

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