[Solved] Help needed from parents

Hi all,
It has been a few days since I have posted and I have had no responses as yet. I am really keen to get some responses from this site as it is the only one I have seen that is just for dads. I have had some replies from other websites which have mostly been from mums. I am really interested to hear from dads.
I would be so grateful if you could jsut take a few minutes out to post on this thread.
Thank you,
Leanne

Interesting Q's - personnaly, my immediate response is I don't know... The perceptions I had as a child to those questions is completely distorted, or I never thought about them when I was a child and so don't know how they have changed...

Will try and answer:
Q: Do you feel that childhood and parenting has changed?
A: Yes, access to computer games and the speed /ability to communicate with peers is very different - BUT my kids are not old enough for that to have a significant impact yet.

Q: Do you think that being a child and a parent is more difficult and dangerous today than it was when you were young?
A: The risk of children being "snatched" appears higher (I assume stats prove it), but I would say that we are more cautious as a society and so places like playgrounds are a lot safer.

Q:Do you think you have more or different issues to deal with than your parents did?
A: No - there is more information available at a younger age, BUT the issues still have to be dealt with. The younger age might make the resoultion of those issues more difficult.

Q: Do you feel you worry about your children in a different way in today’s society?
A: Don't know!

I hope that helps - my 3 kids are all under 7 (the risk of giving to much information publically is impacting this information..) !

Hi batman,
Thank you so much for responding, as I said I am really keen to hear from dads. Thank you for taking the time to consider the questions - it is appreciated!
I look forward to hearing what other dads have to say,
Leanne

Hi

Do you feel that childhood and parenting has changed?
-- I do not think that the dynamics between children and parents have changed particularly although the environment that we are in has changed, more electronic/more nuclear families
I would say that my children have a similar upbringing to myself, but have more tv and electronic games to contend with, whereas I a lot less electronic games and tv programs at a young age. My chilren are 4.5 boy / 1.5 girl

Do you think that being a child and a parent is more difficult and dangerous today than it was when you were young?
--I think the fear of being a parent is more prevalent, but that in the main comes because "bad" news is more reported than it used to be. Stranger danger is probably a lot less than it used to be because it is so much more in the conciousness of most people. I think that family danger is the greater danger for children, as it always was.

Do you think you have more or different issues to deal with than your parents did?
Definitely different issues to deal with, a lot of which come back to life as it is now. My parents aim was for me to have a better life than them (they were first generation carribean in the UK) and I would say that they have achieved their aim. Although our aim is the same for our children, it is starting from a very different base.
We have more (what would have been considered) luxuries than back in my childhood, colour TV, computer, games systems, disposable income. We can thus spend more time on our kids education, but also as they grow up we will have to deal with the differences in communcation these days which are so different to when I was growing up. The amount of information available may make my children grow up faster than I have to, but I will find out in a few years 🙂

Do you feel you worry about your children in a different way in today’s society?
I think the same worries exist, in terms of education, friends.

I would add that the same issues exist in a different way. The easiest way for me to sum it up is that when I was growing up "some youths'" would walk around with ghetto blasters, or radios playing full volume as they walked around, these days the same type of "youths'" are walking around with phones blasting out music, the same repeat of history just different products being used.

As I said I would love to hear from you all so please post on this thread your thoughts, opinions and experiences. It would also be great if you could add how many children you have and their ages for a bit of context please. Thank you.

Hi Zaden,
Thank you for taking the time to post - all help is appreciated!
Thanks again,
Leanne

Do you feel that childhood and parenting has changed?
Yes I do - i think childhood has all but disappeared - Kids these days want to grow up to fast and to quick and the sad thing is that society thinks that too, [censored] ed at primary school, horrific films at 12, clothes esp those for girls look like those worn by young women not 5, 6, 7 year olds. Parenting has changed too it s mind field of fear and childrens rights, my folks didn't face half the pressures i face as a parent.

Do you think that being a child and a parent is more difficult and dangerous today than it was when you were young? Again yes to both - children are more aware of stranger danger, each day in the news there is stuff about kids going missing or being shot, knifed etc. I wouldn't have thought about how to protect myself or escapre if taken, my nieces do. Bullying was largley name calling and the odd fight but now emotional bulling is rife with texts and email, there is more malice behind it. Parents are more fearful for their kids, that brings an emotional difficulty to childhood that stops the freedom of innocence and risk, the boxing in of adventure esp in boys which leads to boys needing to express that need for adventure in other ways. So we see a rise in antisocial behaviour and escapism. For Parents its difficult if you disprove of the new social norms in childcare, ie smacking as a form of discipline - parents are lossing the freedom to parent and losing the understanding of how to. Why do the goverment need to have a parent know how initiative - coz for the main part parents don't have the skills required anymore, our parents didn't pass them on. The role of a father is quietly being strangled out of the family unit and we are seeing the results of that splinter through society at every level.

Do you think you have more or different issues to deal with than your parents did? Yes. The explosion of a technology based society for starters, the rise of futher education as the only route forward for our children (compared to skill based options), the greed of materialism, the get rich and famous route to life that so many live for rather than hard graft (get a boobjob and sleep with someone famous and your life is sorted), the lack of social care, the fall of the welfare state (yes i do think that has an effect, think about the long term effects!) the lack of community, the demise of the nuclear family, the errosion of grandparents as important carers in the family, shall i go on? OK... the growing inability to imagine and dream as our kids are spoon fed entertainment, the whole food issue that kids face, enviromental issues, citizenship issues, the fact that if i don't earn enought to look after my wife and i in our retirment then the pressure falls to my kids coz a state pensions wont buy me anything.......i'll end there but i could go on!!! 😆

Do you feel you worry about your children in a different way in today’s society? I worry that they wont be free to be who they wont to be... that they will be forced to fit in to a society that doesn't care for the individual anymore.

I have 2 boys aged 3 and 4 a half ( the half is vitally important!! 😉

Hi freerunner,

Thank you for the reply. All the responses so far have been really interesting!

Thanks again,

Leanne