Building Strong Families 2004

A Study of African American and Latino/Latina Parents from YMCA of the USA and Search Institute

Fact Sheet

Half of African American and Latino/a parents surveyed say it is very challenging to be a parent today. It is especially challenging for parents who are not married or in a committed relationship, those who are parents of teenagers, and those facing economic stress.

• Among single parents, 67 percent said "parenting is very challenging" compared to 41 percent of those who reported being married or in a committed relationship.
• Fifty-nine percent of parents with adolescents (11-17 years old) find parenting very challenging compared to 49 percent of parents of 6-10 year-olds; and 42 percent of parents of infants to 5 year-olds.

Many parents have little support from beyond their family to help them be good parents.

• Twenty-nine percent of the African American and Latino/a respondents reported no parenting support from any other source or partner - not even extended family. Overall, nearly 60% of the parents surveyed have only one source of support other than their partner.

Though two-thirds of the parents surveyed say their spouse or partner helps them a lot as a parent, only about one-third of parents say they have an excellent relationship with their partner.

• Only 33% of African American parents and 43% of Latino/a parents indicated that they have an excellent relationship with their spouse or partner. (African American parents in this sample are less likely to have a spouse or partner.)

Job loss in the community was the most frequently mentioned "major problem," among the parents surveyed.

• Overall, 48% of African American parents and 47% of Latino/a parents indicated that job loss in their community was a major problem for them as parents. Fifty-four percent of parents surveyed who don't speak English said job loss is a major challenge.

Protecting children from negative values and influences was another "major problem" for both African American and Latino/a parents.

• In fact, 40% percent of African American parents and 32% of Latino/a parents surveyed said protecting their child from negative values and influences was a major problem. At the same time, 88% of both African American and Latino/a parents indicated that they place a high priority on teaching their child basic values such as equality, honesty, and responsibility.

The vast majority of both African American and Latino/a parents are investing time and energy in helping their children grow up successfully.

• More than seven out of 10 parents in both groups say they emphasize teaching their child values, helping the child feel good at something, teaching their child how to deal with conflict, see that their child follows their expectations, and help their child enjoy learning.

The most common thing parents said would help them as parents was to be able to spend more time with their child.

• Among African American parents, 77% said this would help them "a lot," as did 84% of Latino/a parents. Other top priorities included feeing more secure in their family income, having more leaders who make families a top priority, and a teacher or child care worker taking a personal interest in their child.

The Building Strong Families 2004 study included national telephone surveys of 685 African American parents, 639 Latino/Latina parents, and, for some questions, 261 Caucasian parents. These were supported by focus groups with parents in New York City and Chicago. BSF 2004 builds on a similar study performed in 2002 that included a survey of more than 1,000 parents in the U.S.