Research Paper on:
Parenting/Gender Variations

Unformatted Sample Text from the Research Paper:
which implies that mothers are generally nurturing and fathers typically handle discipline (Shek, 2002). However, in reality, there have been few studies conducted that analyze the role of fathers as  socializing agents or the differences between fathers and mothers as to patterns of parenting (Shek, 2002). Whether or not men and women actually do parent differently has become a factor  in the ongoing societal debate on the morality of divorce, single-parent families and same-sex parent families. Advocates of traditional families, such as David Popenoe, argue that traditional families are  significantly better at raising children because the child has the variation in parenting styles provided by an in-house biological mother and father (Cappel, 1999). Rationale for the Research  `According to Popenoe , fathers play more aggressively with their children regardless of the childs sex. A fathers play incorporates more rough-and-tumble type activities then that of the typical mother.  With older children, a father will routinely incorporate a teaching factor into play-"let me show you..."-that challenges a child to live up to higher standards and expectations. A mothers play  in contrast will be more on the childs level. By playing with most mothers, a child has the opportunity to direct the play where a typical father will lead the  play activity. The point is that both ways of relating to children are important for their overall development. This conception of the roles of mothers and fathers also fits  with the traditional perspective on how these roles are different according to gender. Nevertheless, is this perception provable according to empirical research? Statement of Research Objectives In order to  determine the answer to this question, this study will examine the literature on empirical studies published over the last five years that pertain to the parenting styles and perceived differences