Differences Between Children Raised by Stay-at-home Mothers and Working Mothers

Introduction

Some fear the mother’s ability to balance between work and family life. In fact, in the present age of globalization and professional development, mothers are particularly concerned about how to balance between job responsibilities and domestic chores. Reference to the research of Vincent, Ball, and Braun (2010) indicates that the involvement of mothers in professional corridors has triggered much discourse on parenting. Against this backdrop, there are many people who argue that children brought up by mothers are quite different from those of stay at home mothers. Whereas a lot of scholarly ink has been devoted to the investigation of the upbringing, personalities, care and social discrimination of children, little attention has been paid to the differences between children raised by stay at home moms and working moms. According to Bianchi and Milkie (2010), it is difficult to find stay at home mothers in the current economies. Children raised by stay at home mothers are therefore likely to be different from those whose mothers go to work. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the differences between children that raised by stay-at-home moms and working moms.

Children Raised by Stay at Home Moms

The ideal parenting requirement is that children should be able to be brought up by their mothers. Stay at home mothers play a pivotal role in the development of their children. In a study investigating the increasing trend of mothers who opt to stay at home, D'Vera, Livingston, and Wang (2014) observe that stay at home mothers are able to make the most important decisions for their children. This means that the children are brought up under the watchful eye of the parents. It is also important to note that children brought up by stay at home mothers often get the necessary attention and communication which is a prerequisite for character development. It is for this reason that D'Vera, Livingston and Wang (2014) note that such children have high chances of being disciplined because the mother is always present not only to direct their paths but also act the role model. The role of relationships and emotions in a family cannot be underestimated. Reference to the study by Orgad and Benedictis (2015) indicates that stay at home mothers are currently on the rise because people have realized that mothers’ presence regulates emotions of children. This argument buttresses the opinion of D'Vera, Livingston, and Wang (2014) who contend that the stay at home mothers are in the present century increasing because they have learned the importance of instilling the culture of togetherness, love, and warmth in children. 

Staying at home is highly appreciated by mothers. This is because children have boundaries defining their development. Further, these children are unique because the mothers interact with them and teach them virtues such as generosity, positive body image, exercise and the need to perform domestic chores together. Researching on the upbringing of the children whose mothers stay at home, Ladge, Humberd, and Eddleston (2018) intelligently summarize their study by mentioning that these children appear industrious, refined and well prepared for the uncertainties of life.

More Care for Stay at Home Mothers’ Children

A great amount of research has confirmed that children brought up by stay at home mothers have more care and attention given to them. According to Baker and Milligan (2015), children who stay with their mothers get more care especially with regards to cognitive and emotional development. This is particularly evident in areas such as the creation of an exploratory environment, sleep, creation of physical playing space and feeding among others. These children have adequate guidance because the mother is often watching what they explore. It is noteworthy to mention that many children may end up getting spoilt because the parents are not present to guide them during the exploration process. Feeding is equally of great importance to children. Stay at home mothers are particularly important to their children because they monitor what the babies feed on. This prevents cases of obesity and addiction to food substances that do not add healthy value.

Personality of Children Whose Mothers Stay at Home

Children brought up by stay at home mothers tend to be more sociable, kind and selfless. According to D'Vera, Livingston, and Wang (2014), the equality time parents spend with their children often refines the behavior of the children so that they come out disciplined. This is in sharp contrast with those children who are either pampered or their parents are often away from home. It is also noteworthy to mention that because mothers spend time with the children, they are often peaceable and calm since the emotional development is regulated. In psychological research exploring the benefits of stay at home mothers, Chesley (2011) observes that staying with the children reduces the chances of deviant behaviors such as aggression, destructive conduct, truancy, and drug use. He adds that in terms of expression, children whose mothers stay at home are often open and not introverted in their expression.

Advantages and Disadvantages of Stay at Home Moms

A thorough analysis of stay at home mothers shows certain advantages and disadvantages. First, the mother is always around the children to monitor their behaviors. This helps in preventing any unwanted conducts. Secondly, children are offered the necessary security and attachment that only mothers can give. Another advantage of stay at home mothers is that mothers have the time to instill certain principles such as feeding, sleep time and other behaviors consistently. On the flipside, stay at home mothers suffer the disadvantage of feeling isolated and living a boring life. Healey (2016) observes that apart from this, these people may not only be physically exhausted but also lack time for their hobbies. This is because all their time is dedicated to parenting. Perhaps one of the greatest disadvantages of stay at home moms is that they have to rely on their husbands for financial support. Researching on this point, Ladge, Humberd, and Eddleston (2018) observe that mothers resort to seeking employment because they want financial independence.

Children Brought up by Working Mothers

The nature of the present economies dictates that parents should be sent away from their children so that they make fend for them. In the upbringing of these children, the parents are often away. Vincent, Ball, and Braun (2010) observe that in many cases, parenting of these children is left for either nannies or house helps. This point is echoed by Baker and Milligan (2015) who argue that working mothers pay limited attention to the development of their children. It is unfortunate that some of these children may be weaned too early hence they do not get adequate nutrients from the breast milk. Although there is a clamor to get parents to work, Baker and Milligan (2015) warn that working moms get little time to interact with children so that they may influence brain development. It is also noteworthy to mention that working moms neglect their children especially on matters regarding discipline and nutrition. In the opinion of Chesley (2011), children brought up by working moms rely heavily on the counsel of nannies or house helps. As a result, the emotional and cognitive developments are not monitored. This is the point buttressed by Vincent, Ball and Braun (2010) who contend that working moms risk and neglect their parental duties at the expense of professional development. There is little communication between the parents and the children. It is therefore difficult for parents to instill the right kind of behavior due to limited interaction. Researching on parenting, Orgad and Benedictis (2015) observe that working moms leave their children in a rather confused manner because even their academic homework receives limited attention.

Care given to the Children of Working Mothers

Researchers on parenting agree that the amount of care given to children whose mothers go to work is lower than those who stay with parents. According to Chesley (2011), children whose mothers go to work do not receive adequate care. This is because the parents leave early before the children wake up and they may return after the children have slept. Areas such as showing love, setting limits and boundaries are poorly done by working mothers. In the opinion of Pedersen (2012) who stresses that children whose mothers are always absent are seriously missioning out on brain development activities that the mother should engage them in. It, therefore, means that in term of upbringing, working mothers do less than their counterparts who stay at home. It is against this backdrop that Kurtzleben (2014) warns on the alarming rate of mothers' involvement in professional duties at the expense of parenting. The figure below shows the parenting trends between 1970 and 2012.

Personalities of Working Moms’ Children

A thorough comparative analysis of children brought up by working and stay at home mothers reveals sharp contrasts. According to Pedersen (2012), children whose parents often absent tend to be emotionally unstable, selfish and a bit impulsive. This is because the mothers may not have adequate time to tame their emotions. It is equally important to point out that because parents are absent, they may give children a lot of presents and foods to compensate for lost presence. This makes the children overindulgent. The long hours children spend without their mothers are often diverted to deviant behaviors. In a study documenting the behaviors of children whose parents are often absent from home, Carr (2015) observes that many deviant mannerisms are traceable to idle time used for experimenting with various things. This is the point echoed by Ladge, Humberd, and Eddleston (2018) who argue that children from either single families or working mothers tend to be emotionally unstable and irritable.

Advantages and Disadvantages of Working Mothers

The first advantage of a working mother is financial freedom. Closely linked to this is the fact that she can easily meet the needs of the children without relying on the husband. According to Healey (2016), working mothers can easily raise the living standard of children. Further, working mothers provide all the facilities needed by children. On the other hand, working mothers leave children to be lonely for long. In academic matters, children miss the presence of mothers to represent them during school functions. Finally, due to workplace commitment, working mothers do not have the time to monitor the emotional and cognitive development of the children.

Social Discrimination

The working mothers in different parts of the world have reported discrimination. This social discrimination occurs either during pregnancy or when they return to work. Researchers agree that there is inequality in many workplaces because of working mothers. According to Morgan (2013), pregnant or breastfeeding mothers are subjected to discretionary and sexist biases because many people feel they do not deserve honor at the workplace. The main reason for this treatment is that such women are perceived to be lazy and unproductive at work. Issues such as questionable recruitment procedures, biased language, unfair promotions and remuneration practices that seek to alienate women are common in certain workplaces. These discriminatory practices lower the morale and productivity of women.

Conclusion

This essay has investigated the differences between children brought up by working moms and stay at home moms. It is apparent that mothers play a great role in the emotional, psychological and physical development of their children. In the present economies when mothers have to stay away from children because of work, many children are robbed of the time and attachment necessary for their well-being. The paper, therefore, concludes that children brought up by stay at home moms are far much better than those bred by working moms. This paper makes the following recommendations. First, working moms should balance work and parenting so that they give attention to the children. Secondly, managers of various companies should revise recruitment policies so that pregnant and nursing mothers are not locked out of opportunities. Finally, human rights activists should play the role of sensitizing people on the need to embrace every member of the workplace irrespective of their gender.