Kimberly G. In general, the main social problem that is portrayed throughout this article is the negative impact infants have when parents decide to put them in an orphanage. Parents most likely give all their love, care, and affection to their little ones when they are born. On the other hand, their are some countries with parents that unfortunately do not have the ability to raise a child both emotionally and economically, therefore the way of keeping the infant alive is by taking the baby to an orphanage. Moreover, when a mother is carrying a baby inside them, they tend to build some type of bond between them. However, that connection is untied very quickly as soon as the toddler no longer has interaction with the mother. As illustrated in the article, children that have been left in an orphanage a few months after they are born, certain wires in the baby’s brain get affected. Why would the brain of an infant get affected when parents decide to leave their little one in an orphanage? And why would parents leave their child in an orphanage? Looking at this social problem in an symbolic internationalist point of view, we can predict that parents who have decided to put their child in an orphanage may interact with a low educated and economically environment. This leads them to believe they are not capable of raising a healthy child. Also, as depicted in the article, the parents who decided to leave their 6-month-old son due to an illness called polio, most likely made that difficult decision because they could not afford vaccines to prevent the illness.
Furthermore, babies need warmth, care, love, and affection from their mother. When a toddler is raised in an orphanage, they tend to experience neglect. This article also portrays that neglect towards infants produces emotional problems and difficulty in language. The connection between a parent and a toddler forms healthy developed brain. Unfortunately, children in orphanages do not have the privilege to experience a bond with a parent. Parents who decide to leave their infant in an orphanage might not think of all the consequences the infant will face, as they get older. For example, the infant might fear interacting with people and experience sleeping problems. They might also create anger and anxiety. All these dysfunctions would eventually lead to depression and as the infant gets older, they would have a difficult time adapting to their surroundings. Some solutions to this social problem might be providing education to the parents about the consequences orphanages causes to an infant. Other solutions are providing health benefits to the countries that lack vital vaccines that babies need, and provide them with jobs to be able to support their little ones.
Every day children get abandoned by their parents – sometimes due to the parent being overwhelmed, other times due to a child’s chronic disease or the parent’s financial troubles. Whatever the reason, the child usually ends up in an orphanage, where the number of orphans unproportionally exceeds the number of social workers. In this environment children cannot receive the amount of attention and affection they need for proper development of their brain. Orphans usually develop wrong connections in their brains and never learn right from wrong or what love means since nobody taught them. Instead, they are faced with neglect and physical punishment. Growing up in this environment often results in issues in their adoption family who they are indifferent towards. Furthermore, orphans have a hard time adapting in adult life, which can result in unemployment and homelessness. Society gets disrupted on levels of family, education and economy and thus this problem can be classified as a social issue.
The problems which orphans face, can be best looked at from the interactionist perspective since the issue stems from the interaction - or in this case lack of interaction - of individuals. As clearly described in the article, Izidor Ruckel’s behavior was mostly affected by what he experienced himself. If he was punished for misbehaving by being spanked, he would do the same to a different child for misbehaving. This behavior is called social learning. On a bigger scale, it is a never ending cycle, which affects many children and shapes their behavior toward other individuals. Another example is the lack of love orphans experience. Later in life this results in a skewed sense of self and issues when a child is confronted with love by an adoptive parent or significant other. It is a feeling they have never experienced and thus feel overwhelmed and often times, like in Izidor’s case, react in a negative way and might even run away. This behavior results in higher rates of homelessness, school dropouts and diseases due to the lack of money and support.
Like many social problems, there is never a perfect solution that will solve it altogether. However, I believe additional funding for orphanages would already make a big difference. These funds could then be used toward hiring and training of more social workers and counselors. Creating a smaller ratio of children per social worker, allows each worker to spend more quality time with each child and opens the possibility of an emotional connection. More social workers would also be needed to smooth out the adoption process, which can be a very stressful experience for both the adopted child, since it is thrown in a new environment with strangers, and the adoption family, who is faced with an often angry overwhelmed child. The funds could also be used towards further training of social workers, so they are able to target the most prevalent problems effectively. More attention and love for the orphans would be a very effective first step to reduce the number of children left with permanent scares after being an orphan. Less scares also means less social damage, which will benefit society overall. I specifically chose this article since I believe it is an important issue many people are not aware of. We tend to take our family and upbringing for granted and forget that most children are less fortunate. I believe it is important to raise awareness and educate society on this issue to both help the individuals but also society overall.
Jennifer T. Innocent children are abandon by their parents for various reason either they can't financially support them, can't give them the medical attention they require, they are not emotionally ready to be a parent or out of cruelty. Whatever the case might be the children are the ones that suffer the consequences. This is a social problem that looking at it as an interactionist perspective the lack of communication and interaction with the parents affects a child not only emotionally but mentally. A child needs the love from a parent, someone to give them the attention they desire.
In this article we learn that the absence of parents affect the brain. The brain of a child that has been neglected does not fully develop in comparison to one of a child that has been raised with parents. This can affect the children's relationships with other beings. they do not know how to respond to a caring person all they now is to treat other how they have been treated. For example, Izidor Ruckel would get angry when he was demonstrated love and compassion he preferred to be beat. Growing up he was never shown any other type of affection besides cruelty. At the age of 33 he claims to have changed his way of thinking. Being adopted by caring parents rewired his brain and accepts affection.
Unfortunately not every abandon child runs with Ruckel's luck, there are many children then grow up in orphanages and have serious problems. For example, women that seek love and attention to fill the void of not having the love of a parent may end up in physically and mentally abusive relationships. Men and women can end up with disorders or homeless. Helping orphanages financially may be a solution, many orphanages are over crowded and children can not be tend to correctly. Looking in depth to the personal of the orphanages can stop the cruelty that these kids suffer. Providing the education they need to become successful and not just another statistic of n orphan out in the streets. This article really struct me because i knew that abandoning a child had it's emotional consequences in the child but i did not know that it had a huge impact on the development of the brain.
This article provides a depiction of the astounding consequences orphans face due to emotional scarring, neglect, and abuse. Because human beings are so complex, emotional bonding and a family based foundation is vital for development. When the provision of those basic needs that only a family can provide is substituted with neglect, boredom, abuse, and lack of care and emotional interactions, it is okay to assume that their development process will more likely be disrupted. As this article follows the story of a Romanian orphan with polio, it portrays how he is a living testimony proving that orphans may develop an emotional disconnection in their future relationships. For example, he was adopted at 11 by a loving family. However, he reacted to their nurture with anger and negative thoughts. The article indicates that without "attention, affection, and stimulation...the wiring of the brain goes awry." which can lead to problems for the future of the child. This issue is a social problem because lack of social, physical, and mental development can lead to poverty, mental illnesses, and crime. These orphans are citizens that may grow up not being able to contribute to society or function properly in the world.
This social problem could best be seen through the lenses of an interactionist. An interactionist would point out that the balance of society would be disrupted when the individuals face inadequate social interaction. In this case, these orphans clearly have a deficiency when it comes to emotional interactions, proper attention, and basic mental needs. Odd behaviors and delay in language are some clear outcomes these orphans face. An interactionist would ask, "How is problem behavior learned through interaction?" For example, parents, caretakers, or guardians are usually the key role models in childrens' lives, so children learn to imitate behaviors and adopt a value system influenced by their caretakers. When there isn't much interaction, children won't have the tools to develop a sense of self, values of family and society, and mental health.
Moreover, I believe this social issue is unfortunate because I believe strongly that a sense of family structure is essential. Because the early years of a child is crucial for development, it is only right that they receive the adequate attention and affection. This article captured my attention because I was not raised by my parents, and I had dealt with feeling like an orphan adopted by others. In addition, I can relate to Ruckel. I was fortunate enough to be raised by lovely people, but certain aspects of my life developed later in my adulthood.
A solution to this social issue could be implementing strict laws that regulate and frequently check up on orphanages. Laws can be made that support orphanges with financial aid so there could be a bigger staff (staff that are strictly screened) to avoid neglect. Also, laws that offer education and support for families that have children with disabilities. Our taxes are used for many issues we don't even know much about, so I think our tax dollars spent on this issue would be helpful and definitely worth it. Supporting the welfare of children can affect the future welfare of our country.
Vanessa M. There are an abundance of young children that get abandoned in every society. It's saddening that many of these babies and children are going through different types of domestic violence , like beatings and neglect. These kids are starving for attention and not getting taught any normal social techniques. Their brains are also not developing as they should which can affect them in their adulthood. The lack of child care is hindering their interactions with others as well. They portray themselves and interact with others negatively. As these children leave the orphanage, they will not react with others normally. The article goes on by saying how crucial it is to interact and care for these children so they can be mentally healthy.
This issue is social problem because a sturdy foundation beginning at home is critical for a child to develop and become part of his or her society. If a child has been neglected their whole life and has to interact with others, it can cause problems within the schooling systems, acquiring jobs, and simply aiding in the growth of their society. Much dysfunction can occur within the orphan as they notice that they are not reacting to things as other would. These neglected orphans can be led to a life of homelessness and possible mental illness problems as well. More negative things are likely to occur than positive.
A functionalist would probably say that the ones who are suppose to care for these children or even the parents who abandoned them never had the proper care and affection growing up themselves. They were also taught abnormal interactions thus making them more likely to portray those onto the young developing children. The children would think that kind of socializing and behavior is normal. Essentially, they were not socialized properly and it causes a ripple effect to the orphans.
Possible solutions for this problem could be to make the adoption process less rigorous than it is now. This will make it easier for children to find homes so they can be cared for. Creating well equipped orphanages can be beneficial as well. Having the staff meet certain regulations in order for these children to be taken care of properly. By adding more workers, there can be more nurturing going on in these orphanages. Increasing budgets for these children is also a good way to aid this social problem. Educating more people about this issue will make a huge difference. Many people don't initially think this to be a social problem. With the right knowledge, a change can be made about this issue.
A study in Romania found that orphan’s brains did not receive the right development compared to children that were raised by a family. They realized that a child does not only need shelter and food but he also needs a family. When he is not raised by family he misses out on what it is to have someone to talk to or someone to give them hugs or kisses. It may not seem like it but it was found that it affects the way that the child interacts with others. Why do you say this is a problem? Well if children under the foster care and orphans did not receive the attention they need they will not learn the skills in order to survive in this world. You may ask yourself how does this affect me it could someday affect you because the ones that are being raised right now is the future generation so those children that are not being developed enough could have had the potiental to have found the cure to cancer but because no one cared enough to look for the childs interest the rest of the world lost to.
An interactionist would say that these children are not receiving the care and experiences needed to survive in this world. Orphans do not have a sense of identity because they did not know where they came from. They will feel a sense of worthlessness because they will never get to experience that intimate relationship with people close to them because of the masses that live within an orphanage. They wouldn’t really have stability which means they probably wont be stable and will move from place to place. If they continue to move from place to place they will never be able to move up in the scale of workplace.
I did not really agree with the system that they have going on with the orphanage. They should deal with the children on an individual level and the only way is by finding those children a better home. The orphanages should try and do everything they can in order to get the children to families that will give them the love and attention they need. And if that isn’t enough they should get more staff so that the ratio of children to staff members is smaller and maybe that will help the children reach an intimate relationship with the staff members where the children will develop the skills in order to succeed in life.
The social problem being argued in the article is about the abandoned children that become orphans and being raised without having parents to help shape their thoughts. They are accustomed to the neglect, the beatings, and the boredom that the orphans have to endure on a daily basis. Orphans grow up without the knowledge of what is wrong and what is wrong because no one takes the time to teach them. The children in these orphanages are desperate for attention especially the toddlers since they are so eager to show anyone something new they learned or just simply trying to get the affection that they are deprived of every day. If the parents are not involved in the upbringing of the child, the child will develop an odd behavior as well as trouble with speech and other brain development problem that will arise because the parents are not involved. The point is that the children in those orphanages are suffering they are the victims. Sometimes the parents abandon them because of poverty and they are unable to provide for them so they have the idea that by giving them up they will have a better life. The situations vary on the reasons why children are abandon the result is the same they lack the human interaction. From a functionalist point of view, a family would provide a positive and beneficial institution in which the children receive nurturing, care and unconditional love. This, of course is not always true when it comes to parents abandoning their child. Eventually these children will grow up and if they have children, they will teach them the same behavior they learned. In addition, in a functionalist perspective, everyone has a role a couple could adopt an orphan and turn into a family. The child could grow up in a family and with that, he or she will be less likely to participate in deviant behavior. A possible solution to this social problem would be to use more of the government money to provide individual interactions with and adult so they could get the attention they need as well as the affection they crave also by making the process of adoption less difficult. The solutions will help because if the children get the affection they need they will have less language difficulties as well as less trouble interacting with other people. I picked this topic because of personal experience and I found the topic as something that I could relate.
Anahid to my opinion pointed out a few interesting factors in the issue concerning child neglect and abandonment. Initially, what she mentioned about us undervaluing our families, connections, and the way we were raised reminded me of a speech I heard regarding domestic violence and sexual assault, and although these are different issues, the fact that they’re all social problems connects them on a deeper level. In this speech, the speaker talked about how domestic violence “has become the norm”; he said that we tend to refer to our childhood as “sheltered” if we did not encounter such problems, not realizing this only means we lived a normal life. Similarly, in a society where 50% of marriages result in a divorce and teenage pregnancy is common, child abandonment seems to be expected. In addition, I also agree with Anahid on her application of the interactionist perspective to this issue, as she said in their relations with their caregivers, the neglected children mimic their behavior. On the other hand, she pointed out that the problem also emerges from not interacting with others, which leads to their confusion about what love and affection are.
While I agree with the fact that children learn from their surroundings and the way they are treated, the fact that two distinct factors contribute to the effects of abandonment on children makes me think of the issue from the functionalist perspective. According to this theory, similar social problems are inevitable, and they serve a function in society such as the creation of jobs in the social services professions. They also rise from social construction. Both interactions with others and the lack of it cause emotional and behavioral problems in neglected children. The family is the first and most important institution in a child’s life, but problems of other institutions affect its stability and lead to other issues. In this case, the economy seems to be the institution that causes much of the problems leading to child abandonment. For instance, it is a leading rationale behind teenage mothers, domestic violence victims, parents of disabled children, or simply parents living in poverty often giving up their children. They don’t have the proper resources to care for them, so they think they are giving them their best chance. Additionally, financial issues are also problematic for loving parents wanting to adopt, yet they are denied due to their lack of resources. Then, there are the foster families that take on the responsibility of raising the children only for the state’s monetary assistance and end up abusing or neglecting them.
All in all, either children are abandoned because their parents can’t provide for them, they don’t get adopted because the candidates can’t satisfy the state/government standards, or they are taken advantage of by foster parents with financial problems, among other situations. Therefore, while I think Anahid’s solution to raise funds is realistic and would be a great one, I also think that the problem itself emerges from the economy. People in this country are already suffering from poverty, and the great recession has resulted in the collapse of the economy not only in the U.S. but also globally. So, I don’t believe that there are clear-cut solutions to completely eliminate the issue; however, I do think that our best chance at reducing child abandonment rates to some extent is by educating people. With the advancement of technology, we have the opportunity to spread the word about these issues through social media, student associations and nonprofit organizations. We can always hope for a better economy to fund for additional programs, but in the mean time talking about the problems is a must, and it doesn’t cost money.
Theresa M. Says I agree with what Erika. P in that the children growing up in these orphanages have odd and dysfunctional developmental problems due to the lack of parental guidance in their childhood. Erika points out that because these kids grow up without any form of parental affection and no adult guidance what so ever, the kids have issues in the way they behave and interact with others once they are older. I completely agree because these kids are basically teaching themselves in an environment where beatings are normal and they are being left alone to basically raise themselves. A children’s emotional and mental development comes from what they learn as children from their parents, to what is wrong or right and how to interact with other people. If a child has no one to teach them and they are growing up and learning in an environment of neglect and beatings then they’ll never learn how to act or be around other people. Children will just act in erratic ways because there was no one there to tell them otherwise. Also, because they had no one to show any affection to them the mere act of affection becomes foreign to them it becomes hard to accept and welcome any form of affection when they grew up believing that their bad behavior should be met with beatings and nothing else. I chose Erika’s response because I agree in what she says that the children are victims and also in what she says that parents in poverty give up their children in hopes that they will have a better life but fail to realize that the journey there is harsh and sometimes these children don’t always meet the ending the biological parents initially expected. I think this specific issue is a problem because it becomes a scar in the children’s life as they grow older. The suffering and pain follows them as they grow older and it becomes difficult for them live and integrate into society because what they considered normal for them, for example beatings and general neglect when they sought love and support, becomes strange and odd compared to what society would normally do, for example in the face of an angry child a parent would try to talk to them and understand them. This specific problem is best explained through the interactionist perspective. The problem arises from the fact that most of these children are being greatly affected by their lack of interactions with a parental figure. An interactionist would point out that the subsequent consequences of a growing child without proper guidance. These children grow up in a society different than what they are used to it becomes difficult to integrate into society, causing a disruption in what is considered normal. It is essential for a child to have a parental figure there as they grow older as it is this parental figure that eventually helps to further develop the brain for that child. Without any proper guidance, like Erika points out, the kids will not develop proper behavior, and have delay in language skills and overall brain activity. There are various possible solutions to this problem, like Erika said; increasing funds for an orphanage so that more staff are hired to care for the children is possible. I agree that maybe if there was more money orphanages can focus on hiring more people, e.g. counselors, who could provide individual attention for each child so that they at least have a parental figure. In my opinion this issue stems from lack of education of the biological parents. If people were educated in these facts, the consequences of an unplanned child and the consequences to that child if they were to be abandoned, maybe then people would be more conscious about their actions towards future children. In all, I do agree that added funds to an orphanage could make a difference and sounds realistic in that it goes directly in to helping the abandoned child.
I agree with Anahid, many parents who have financial troubles or believe they are incapable of raising a child decide to relinquish their parental rights. These children if not adopted right away are left in orphanages, faced with neglect either by intentional or unintentional practices. Orphanages or group homes are understaffed and unequipped to handle the emotional needs for all the children in their care. Children who do not receive attention and nurturing during early stages of development face emotional consequences later on in their lives. They often times become withdrawn and are filled with anger they do not know how to express correctly or appropriately. These children are emotionally stunted and have difficulties communicating how they feel and in some cases turn to violence to express themselves. This is a social problem because many children who face neglect in early developmental years of life, or neglect in general, face many psychological issues that negatively impacts how affectively they function in society. Generally speaking children who face neglect have trouble holding down jobs which forces them into the vicious cycle of poverty. Neglect is a cycle that can be a learned behavior or can be caused by a lack of emotional support during developmental periods of life. I choose to comment on Anahid's post because it is well written and thoughtful. This topic is personally connected to me and is commonly over looked because we are use to the loving nurturing homes we come from and forget that some children are not as fortunate.
This complicated issue can be looked at from any perspective but Functionalist is the lens I will use to analyze this social issue. According to a functionalist perspective this problem not only serves a purpose to society but is necessary for society to function. Parents who give their children up to orphanages are indirectly employing all the workers who contribute to running these facilities, on the flip side it may be beneficial in keeping the parents from entering the cycle of poverty. Furthermore, it also gives those who want to adopt children an opportunity in becoming parents, it also supplies jobs to phycologist and advocates trying to improve the quality of care provided in orphanages.
Having more funds distributed to orphanages for better training and hiring of more social workers would help immensely in lowering the ratio of social workers to child but that would not necessarily mean that the emotional neglect or the results of it would decrease. I believe that more awareness about these issues and what is occurring in orphanages would not only help in encouraging reform but it would also lead to the implementation of new policies. This would help with the care quality that we as society are seeing in orphanages. Raising awareness may also lead to private donors getting involved to help with the financial aspect of this social issue.
Roxana J. In response to Vanessa M. I agree with what was said because from what the article describes, which is that many, children left behind like the Romanians do suffer from having no parent around and being in an orphanage for a long period of time. What stood out to be the most about what Vanessa wrote was that many of these orphanages later in life will not react to others as they should , this stood out to me the most because as I was reading the article that’s all I kept thinking of because as the brain does not function as it would if you had support from a family member , like anyone at all you learn how to care, love , and sympathize , but if you are never thought that then where would they learn it from which would make it harder for to interact with others. I chose to comment on this particular peer’s entry because we have the same views on this article, even though in some parts it’s agree to disagree. Orphanages not being able to or having a mentality and emotional problems because the neglect of a parent not being there is in a sense common because like the article says they grow up with no one, no one to teach them love or care, this is a social problem because many parents having these children are destroying the ability of them living a normal life, it is the parents fault because they should have never gotten pregnant if they were unable to take care of their children. The perspective I would chose would be the interactionist perspective because it focuses on how individual interactions between people affect or their behaviors leading to how they impact society. The reason I believe this relates is because like these orphanages, a main example the guy mentioned in the article, Ruckle was part of that world and when he finally got adopted his actions and his emotions were not a good response to his adopted parents, leading and showing other parents that maybe adopting orphanages is not the best idea, leading people to pay more for the places where they are located at. It is obvious that people that want children want to help out but these kids have problems emotionally and mentally which is not always bad because they grow out of it but in some cases they never can. Vanessa’s proposal is not that adequate to what I have been saying because the problem is not only that it is hard for people to adopt from orphanages, but instead of what they would have to go home with , and I think a lot of people are not prepared for what these kids feel or how they are. My proposal would be that that these orphanages create a type of group environment so that these children feel loved and cared, and especially to feel a part of something. As well as having therapist go from time to time so they can get all of their emotional, and frustration out with them. This would be helpful for the facility in which they are in and families whom are wanting to adopt, but especially to the kids so they can be able to live as if they always had a parent.
11 comments:
Anonymous said…
Kimberly G.
In general, the main social problem that is portrayed throughout this article is the negative impact infants have when parents decide to put them in an orphanage. Parents most likely give all their love, care, and affection to their little ones when they are born. On the other hand, their are some countries with parents that unfortunately do not have the ability to raise a child both emotionally and economically, therefore the way of keeping the infant alive is by taking the baby to an orphanage. Moreover, when a mother is carrying a baby inside them, they tend to build some type of bond between them. However, that connection is untied very quickly as soon as the toddler no longer has interaction with the mother. As illustrated in the article, children that have been left in an orphanage a few months after they are born, certain wires in the baby’s brain get affected. Why would the brain of an infant get affected when parents decide to leave their little one in an orphanage? And why would parents leave their child in an orphanage? Looking at this social problem in an symbolic internationalist point of view, we can predict that parents who have decided to put their child in an orphanage may interact with a low educated and economically environment. This leads them to believe they are not capable of raising a healthy child. Also, as depicted in the article, the parents who decided to leave their 6-month-old son due to an illness called polio, most likely made that difficult decision because they could not afford vaccines to prevent the illness.
Furthermore, babies need warmth, care, love, and affection from their mother. When a toddler is raised in an orphanage, they tend to experience neglect. This article also portrays that neglect towards infants produces emotional problems and difficulty in language. The connection between a parent and a toddler forms healthy developed brain. Unfortunately, children in orphanages do not have the privilege to experience a bond with a parent. Parents who decide to leave their infant in an orphanage might not think of all the consequences the infant will face, as they get older. For example, the infant might fear interacting with people and experience sleeping problems. They might also create anger and anxiety. All these dysfunctions would eventually lead to depression and as the infant gets older, they would have a difficult time adapting to their surroundings. Some solutions to this social problem might be providing education to the parents about the consequences orphanages causes to an infant. Other solutions are providing health benefits to the countries that lack vital vaccines that babies need, and provide them with jobs to be able to support their little ones.
Anahid M.
Every day children get abandoned by their parents – sometimes due to the parent being overwhelmed, other times due to a child’s chronic disease or the parent’s financial troubles. Whatever the reason, the child usually ends up in an orphanage, where the number of orphans unproportionally exceeds the number of social workers. In this environment children cannot receive the amount of attention and affection they need for proper development of their brain. Orphans usually develop wrong connections in their brains and never learn right from wrong or what love means since nobody taught them. Instead, they are faced with neglect and physical punishment. Growing up in this environment often results in issues in their adoption family who they are indifferent towards. Furthermore, orphans have a hard time adapting in adult life, which can result in unemployment and homelessness. Society gets disrupted on levels of family, education and economy and thus this problem can be classified as a social issue.
The problems which orphans face, can be best looked at from the interactionist perspective since the issue stems from the interaction - or in this case lack of interaction - of individuals. As clearly described in the article, Izidor Ruckel’s behavior was mostly affected by what he experienced himself. If he was punished for misbehaving by being spanked, he would do the same to a different child for misbehaving. This behavior is called social learning. On a bigger scale, it is a never ending cycle, which affects many children and shapes their behavior toward other individuals. Another example is the lack of love orphans experience. Later in life this results in a skewed sense of self and issues when a child is confronted with love by an adoptive parent or significant other. It is a feeling they have never experienced and thus feel overwhelmed and often times, like in Izidor’s case, react in a negative way and might even run away. This behavior results in higher rates of homelessness, school dropouts and diseases due to the lack of money and support.
Like many social problems, there is never a perfect solution that will solve it altogether. However, I believe additional funding for orphanages would already make a big difference. These funds could then be used toward hiring and training of more social workers and counselors. Creating a smaller ratio of children per social worker, allows each worker to spend more quality time with each child and opens the possibility of an emotional connection. More social workers would also be needed to smooth out the adoption process, which can be a very stressful experience for both the adopted child, since it is thrown in a new environment with strangers, and the adoption family, who is faced with an often angry overwhelmed child. The funds could also be used towards further training of social workers, so they are able to target the most prevalent problems effectively. More attention and love for the orphans would be a very effective first step to reduce the number of children left with permanent scares after being an orphan. Less scares also means less social damage, which will benefit society overall.
I specifically chose this article since I believe it is an important issue many people are not aware of. We tend to take our family and upbringing for granted and forget that most children are less fortunate. I believe it is important to raise awareness and educate society on this issue to both help the individuals but also society overall.
Jennifer T.
Innocent children are abandon by their parents for various reason either they can't financially support them, can't give them the medical attention they require, they are not emotionally ready to be a parent or out of cruelty. Whatever the case might be the children are the ones that suffer the consequences. This is a social problem that looking at it as an interactionist perspective the lack of communication and interaction with the parents affects a child not only emotionally but mentally. A child needs the love from a parent, someone to give them the attention they desire.
In this article we learn that the absence of parents affect the brain. The brain of a child that has been neglected does not fully develop in comparison to one of a child that has been raised with parents. This can affect the children's relationships with other beings. they do not know how to respond to a caring person all they now is to treat other how they have been treated. For example, Izidor Ruckel would get angry when he was demonstrated love and compassion he preferred to be beat. Growing up he was never shown any other type of affection besides cruelty. At the age of 33 he claims to have changed his way of thinking. Being adopted by caring parents rewired his brain and accepts affection.
Unfortunately not every abandon child runs with Ruckel's luck, there are many children then grow up in orphanages and have serious problems. For example, women that seek love and attention to fill the void of not having the love of a parent may end up in physically and mentally abusive relationships. Men and women can end up with disorders or homeless. Helping orphanages financially may be a solution, many orphanages are over crowded and children can not be tend to correctly. Looking in depth to the personal of the orphanages can stop the cruelty that these kids suffer. Providing the education they need to become successful and not just another statistic of n orphan out in the streets. This article really struct me because i knew that abandoning a child had it's emotional consequences in the child but i did not know that it had a huge impact on the development of the brain.
Kristina S.
This article provides a depiction of the astounding consequences orphans face due to emotional scarring, neglect, and abuse. Because human beings are so complex, emotional bonding and a family based foundation is vital for development. When the provision of those basic needs that only a family can provide is substituted with neglect, boredom, abuse, and lack of care and emotional interactions, it is okay to assume that their development process will more likely be disrupted. As this article follows the story of a Romanian orphan with polio, it portrays how he is a living testimony proving that orphans may develop an emotional disconnection in their future relationships. For example, he was adopted at 11 by a loving family. However, he reacted to their nurture with anger and negative thoughts. The article indicates that without "attention, affection, and stimulation...the wiring of the brain goes awry." which can lead to problems for the future of the child. This issue is a social problem because lack of social, physical, and mental development can lead to poverty, mental illnesses, and crime. These orphans are citizens that may grow up not being able to contribute to society or function properly in the world.
This social problem could best be seen through the lenses of an interactionist. An interactionist would point out that the balance of society would be disrupted when the individuals face inadequate social interaction. In this case, these orphans clearly have a deficiency when it comes to emotional interactions, proper attention, and basic mental needs. Odd behaviors and delay in language are some clear outcomes these orphans face. An interactionist would ask, "How is problem behavior learned through interaction?" For example, parents, caretakers, or guardians are usually the key role models in childrens' lives, so children learn to imitate behaviors and adopt a value system influenced by their caretakers. When there isn't much interaction, children won't have the tools to develop a sense of self, values of family and society, and mental health.
Moreover, I believe this social issue is unfortunate because I believe strongly that a sense of family structure is essential. Because the early years of a child is crucial for development, it is only right that they receive the adequate attention and affection. This article captured my attention because I was not raised by my parents, and I had dealt with feeling like an orphan adopted by others. In addition, I can relate to Ruckel. I was fortunate enough to be raised by lovely people, but certain aspects of my life developed later in my adulthood.
A solution to this social issue could be implementing strict laws that regulate and frequently check up on orphanages. Laws can be made that support orphanges with financial aid so there could be a bigger staff (staff that are strictly screened) to avoid neglect. Also, laws that offer education and support for families that have children with disabilities. Our taxes are used for many issues we don't even know much about, so I think our tax dollars spent on this issue would be helpful and definitely worth it. Supporting the welfare of children can affect the future welfare of our country.
Vanessa M.
There are an abundance of young children that get abandoned in every society. It's saddening that many of these babies and children are going through different types of domestic violence , like beatings and neglect. These kids are starving for attention and not getting taught any normal social techniques. Their brains are also not developing as they should which can affect them in their adulthood. The lack of child care is hindering their interactions with others as well. They portray themselves and interact with others negatively. As these children leave the orphanage, they will not react with others normally. The article goes on by saying how crucial it is to interact and care for these children so they can be mentally healthy.
This issue is social problem because a sturdy foundation beginning at home is critical for a child to develop and become part of his or her society. If a child has been neglected their whole life and has to interact with others, it can cause problems within the schooling systems, acquiring jobs, and simply aiding in the growth of their society. Much dysfunction can occur within the orphan as they notice that they are not reacting to things as other would. These neglected orphans can be led to a life of homelessness and possible mental illness problems as well. More negative things are likely to occur than positive.
A functionalist would probably say that the ones who are suppose to care for these children or even the parents who abandoned them never had the proper care and affection growing up themselves. They were also taught abnormal interactions thus making them more likely to portray those onto the young developing children. The children would think that kind of socializing and behavior is normal. Essentially, they were not socialized properly and it causes a ripple effect to the orphans.
Possible solutions for this problem could be to make the adoption process less rigorous than it is now. This will make it easier for children to find homes so they can be cared for. Creating well equipped orphanages can be beneficial as well. Having the staff meet certain regulations in order for these children to be taken care of properly. By adding more workers, there can be more nurturing going on in these orphanages. Increasing budgets for these children is also a good way to aid this social problem. Educating more people about this issue will make a huge difference. Many people don't initially think this to be a social problem. With the right knowledge, a change can be made about this issue.
Jennifer M.
A study in Romania found that orphan’s brains did not receive the right development compared to children that were raised by a family. They realized that a child does not only need shelter and food but he also needs a family. When he is not raised by family he misses out on what it is to have someone to talk to or someone to give them hugs or kisses. It may not seem like it but it was found that it affects the way that the child interacts with others. Why do you say this is a problem? Well if children under the foster care and orphans did not receive the attention they need they will not learn the skills in order to survive in this world. You may ask yourself how does this affect me it could someday affect you because the ones that are being raised right now is the future generation so those children that are not being developed enough could have had the potiental to have found the cure to cancer but because no one cared enough to look for the childs interest the rest of the world lost to.
An interactionist would say that these children are not receiving the care and experiences needed to survive in this world. Orphans do not have a sense of identity because they did not know where they came from. They will feel a sense of worthlessness because they will never get to experience that intimate relationship with people close to them because of the masses that live within an orphanage. They wouldn’t really have stability which means they probably wont be stable and will move from place to place. If they continue to move from place to place they will never be able to move up in the scale of workplace.
I did not really agree with the system that they have going on with the orphanage. They should deal with the children on an individual level and the only way is by finding those children a better home. The orphanages should try and do everything they can in order to get the children to families that will give them the love and attention they need. And if that isn’t enough they should get more staff so that the ratio of children to staff members is smaller and maybe that will help the children reach an intimate relationship with the staff members where the children will develop the skills in order to succeed in life.
Erika P.
The social problem being argued in the article is about the abandoned children that become orphans and being raised without having parents to help shape their thoughts. They are accustomed to the neglect, the beatings, and the boredom that the orphans have to endure on a daily basis. Orphans grow up without the knowledge of what is wrong and what is wrong because no one takes the time to teach them. The children in these orphanages are desperate for attention especially the toddlers since they are so eager to show anyone something new they learned or just simply trying to get the affection that they are deprived of every day. If the parents are not involved in the upbringing of the child, the child will develop an odd behavior as well as trouble with speech and other brain development problem that will arise because the parents are not involved. The point is that the children in those orphanages are suffering they are the victims. Sometimes the parents abandon them because of poverty and they are unable to provide for them so they have the idea that by giving them up they will have a better life. The situations vary on the reasons why children are abandon the result is the same they lack the human interaction.
From a functionalist point of view, a family would provide a positive and beneficial institution in which the children receive nurturing, care and unconditional love. This, of course is not always true when it comes to parents abandoning their child. Eventually these children will grow up and if they have children, they will teach them the same behavior they learned. In addition, in a functionalist perspective, everyone has a role a couple could adopt an orphan and turn into a family. The child could grow up in a family and with that, he or she will be less likely to participate in deviant behavior.
A possible solution to this social problem would be to use more of the government money to provide individual interactions with and adult so they could get the attention they need as well as the affection they crave also by making the process of adoption less difficult. The solutions will help because if the children get the affection they need they will have less language difficulties as well as less trouble interacting with other people. I picked this topic because of personal experience and I found the topic as something that I could relate.
Anahid to my opinion pointed out a few interesting factors in the issue concerning child neglect and abandonment. Initially, what she mentioned about us undervaluing our families, connections, and the way we were raised reminded me of a speech I heard regarding domestic violence and sexual assault, and although these are different issues, the fact that they’re all social problems connects them on a deeper level. In this speech, the speaker talked about how domestic violence “has become the norm”; he said that we tend to refer to our childhood as “sheltered” if we did not encounter such problems, not realizing this only means we lived a normal life. Similarly, in a society where 50% of marriages result in a divorce and teenage pregnancy is common, child abandonment seems to be expected. In addition, I also agree with Anahid on her application of the interactionist perspective to this issue, as she said in their relations with their caregivers, the neglected children mimic their behavior. On the other hand, she pointed out that the problem also emerges from not interacting with others, which leads to their confusion about what love and affection are.
While I agree with the fact that children learn from their surroundings and the way they are treated, the fact that two distinct factors contribute to the effects of abandonment on children makes me think of the issue from the functionalist perspective. According to this theory, similar social problems are inevitable, and they serve a function in society such as the creation of jobs in the social services professions. They also rise from social construction. Both interactions with others and the lack of it cause emotional and behavioral problems in neglected children. The family is the first and most important institution in a child’s life, but problems of other institutions affect its stability and lead to other issues. In this case, the economy seems to be the institution that causes much of the problems leading to child abandonment. For instance, it is a leading rationale behind teenage mothers, domestic violence victims, parents of disabled children, or simply parents living in poverty often giving up their children. They don’t have the proper resources to care for them, so they think they are giving them their best chance. Additionally, financial issues are also problematic for loving parents wanting to adopt, yet they are denied due to their lack of resources. Then, there are the foster families that take on the responsibility of raising the children only for the state’s monetary assistance and end up abusing or neglecting them.
All in all, either children are abandoned because their parents can’t provide for them, they don’t get adopted because the candidates can’t satisfy the state/government standards, or they are taken advantage of by foster parents with financial problems, among other situations. Therefore, while I think Anahid’s solution to raise funds is realistic and would be a great one, I also think that the problem itself emerges from the economy. People in this country are already suffering from poverty, and the great recession has resulted in the collapse of the economy not only in the U.S. but also globally. So, I don’t believe that there are clear-cut solutions to completely eliminate the issue; however, I do think that our best chance at reducing child abandonment rates to some extent is by educating people. With the advancement of technology, we have the opportunity to spread the word about these issues through social media, student associations and nonprofit organizations. We can always hope for a better economy to fund for additional programs, but in the mean time talking about the problems is a must, and it doesn’t cost money.
Theresa M. Says
I agree with what Erika. P in that the children growing up in these orphanages have odd and dysfunctional developmental problems due to the lack of parental guidance in their childhood. Erika points out that because these kids grow up without any form of parental affection and no adult guidance what so ever, the kids have issues in the way they behave and interact with others once they are older. I completely agree because these kids are basically teaching themselves in an environment where beatings are normal and they are being left alone to basically raise themselves. A children’s emotional and mental development comes from what they learn as children from their parents, to what is wrong or right and how to interact with other people. If a child has no one to teach them and they are growing up and learning in an environment of neglect and beatings then they’ll never learn how to act or be around other people. Children will just act in erratic ways because there was no one there to tell them otherwise. Also, because they had no one to show any affection to them the mere act of affection becomes foreign to them it becomes hard to accept and welcome any form of affection when they grew up believing that their bad behavior should be met with beatings and nothing else. I chose Erika’s response because I agree in what she says that the children are victims and also in what she says that parents in poverty give up their children in hopes that they will have a better life but fail to realize that the journey there is harsh and sometimes these children don’t always meet the ending the biological parents initially expected. I think this specific issue is a problem because it becomes a scar in the children’s life as they grow older. The suffering and pain follows them as they grow older and it becomes difficult for them live and integrate into society because what they considered normal for them, for example beatings and general neglect when they sought love and support, becomes strange and odd compared to what society would normally do, for example in the face of an angry child a parent would try to talk to them and understand them.
This specific problem is best explained through the interactionist perspective. The problem arises from the fact that most of these children are being greatly affected by their lack of interactions with a parental figure. An interactionist would point out that the subsequent consequences of a growing child without proper guidance. These children grow up in a society different than what they are used to it becomes difficult to integrate into society, causing a disruption in what is considered normal. It is essential for a child to have a parental figure there as they grow older as it is this parental figure that eventually helps to further develop the brain for that child. Without any proper guidance, like Erika points out, the kids will not develop proper behavior, and have delay in language skills and overall brain activity.
There are various possible solutions to this problem, like Erika said; increasing funds for an orphanage so that more staff are hired to care for the children is possible. I agree that maybe if there was more money orphanages can focus on hiring more people, e.g. counselors, who could provide individual attention for each child so that they at least have a parental figure. In my opinion this issue stems from lack of education of the biological parents. If people were educated in these facts, the consequences of an unplanned child and the consequences to that child if they were to be abandoned, maybe then people would be more conscious about their actions towards future children. In all, I do agree that added funds to an orphanage could make a difference and sounds realistic in that it goes directly in to helping the abandoned child.
Desiree A.
I agree with Anahid, many parents who have financial troubles or believe they are incapable of raising a child decide to relinquish their parental rights. These children if not adopted right away are left in orphanages, faced with neglect either by intentional or unintentional practices. Orphanages or group homes are understaffed and unequipped to handle the emotional needs for all the children in their care. Children who do not receive attention and nurturing during early stages of development face emotional consequences later on in their lives. They often times become withdrawn and are filled with anger they do not know how to express correctly or appropriately. These children are emotionally stunted and have difficulties communicating how they feel and in some cases turn to violence to express themselves. This is a social problem because many children who face neglect in early developmental years of life, or neglect in general, face many psychological issues that negatively impacts how affectively they function in society. Generally speaking children who face neglect have trouble holding down jobs which forces them into the vicious cycle of poverty. Neglect is a cycle that can be a learned behavior or can be caused by a lack of emotional support during developmental periods of life. I choose to comment on Anahid's post because it is well written and thoughtful. This topic is personally connected to me and is commonly over looked because we are use to the loving nurturing homes we come from and forget that some children are not as fortunate.
This complicated issue can be looked at from any perspective but Functionalist is the lens I will use to analyze this social issue. According to a functionalist perspective this problem not only serves a purpose to society but is necessary for society to function. Parents who give their children up to orphanages are indirectly employing all the workers who contribute to running these facilities, on the flip side it may be beneficial in keeping the parents from entering the cycle of poverty. Furthermore, it also gives those who want to adopt children an opportunity in becoming parents, it also supplies jobs to phycologist and advocates trying to improve the quality of care provided in orphanages.
Having more funds distributed to orphanages for better training and hiring of more social workers would help immensely in lowering the ratio of social workers to child but that would not necessarily mean that the emotional neglect or the results of it would decrease. I believe that more awareness about these issues and what is occurring in orphanages would not only help in encouraging reform but it would also lead to the implementation of new policies. This would help with the care quality that we as society are seeing in orphanages. Raising awareness may also lead to private donors getting involved to help with the financial aspect of this social issue.
Roxana J.
In response to Vanessa M. I agree with what was said because from what the article describes, which is that many, children left behind like the Romanians do suffer from having no parent around and being in an orphanage for a long period of time. What stood out to be the most about what Vanessa wrote was that many of these orphanages later in life will not react to others as they should , this stood out to me the most because as I was reading the article that’s all I kept thinking of because as the brain does not function as it would if you had support from a family member , like anyone at all you learn how to care, love , and sympathize , but if you are never thought that then where would they learn it from which would make it harder for to interact with others. I chose to comment on this particular peer’s entry because we have the same views on this article, even though in some parts it’s agree to disagree. Orphanages not being able to or having a mentality and emotional problems because the neglect of a parent not being there is in a sense common because like the article says they grow up with no one, no one to teach them love or care, this is a social problem because many parents having these children are destroying the ability of them living a normal life, it is the parents fault because they should have never gotten pregnant if they were unable to take care of their children.
The perspective I would chose would be the interactionist perspective because it focuses on how individual interactions between people affect or their behaviors leading to how they impact society. The reason I believe this relates is because like these orphanages, a main example the guy mentioned in the article, Ruckle was part of that world and when he finally got adopted his actions and his emotions were not a good response to his adopted parents, leading and showing other parents that maybe adopting orphanages is not the best idea, leading people to pay more for the places where they are located at. It is obvious that people that want children want to help out but these kids have problems emotionally and mentally which is not always bad because they grow out of it but in some cases they never can.
Vanessa’s proposal is not that adequate to what I have been saying because the problem is not only that it is hard for people to adopt from orphanages, but instead of what they would have to go home with , and I think a lot of people are not prepared for what these kids feel or how they are. My proposal would be that that these orphanages create a type of group environment so that these children feel loved and cared, and especially to feel a part of something. As well as having therapist go from time to time so they can get all of their emotional, and frustration out with them. This would be helpful for the facility in which they are in and families whom are wanting to adopt, but especially to the kids so they can be able to live as if they always had a parent.
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