1. Social problem policy paper
Social problem policy paperIdentify and define a social problem within the assigned
chaptersIn our society today different people face different kinds of social problems that
can affect the way they relate to society. In this study, we will look at the various social
problems the society faces today.Divorce is a popular social problem especially in the US
today. This can be defined as the legal end of a marriage. Divorce rates in the US have
soared and doubled and reaching its highest in 1980 since the world war two. But in current
analysis, the rates from 1980 to 2005 have shown a significant drop. This means that 20%
of American adults divorce at least once (Baker, 2011).Family violence, abuse and neglect is
another social problem in the society today. Social theorists and scholars have attributed
family violence to a number of factors including male dominance, and poverty (Baker,
2011). Family violence can be defined as a situation where one family member exercises too
much power and control over other members of the family with an intention of retaining it.
In terms of the law, it can be conducted by inflicting bodily harm or sexual harassment to
any family member.Child abuse is also a social problem, it is a situation where a family
member mistreats a minor, and this is through violence, forced labor, neglect, or sexual
harassment. Child abuse can also be in the form of denying a child basic needs such as food,
education and clothing. It is estimated that in the United States only there are 3 million
reports of child abuse annually (Henslin, 2007).Domestic elderly violence is a social
problem whereby an elderly person suffers mistreatments by a close person or relative.
This form of abuse can be perpetrated in forms of psychological, physical or financial
exposition (Leon-Guerrero, 2005).Teen pregnancy, is a social problem where young girls in
their early years due to poor and hard exposure are involved in premature sexual practices
and end up getting pregnant. These pregnancies are mostly cause by child abuse and
negligence, where children lack paternal care and are forced into premature sexual
activities (Buzawa,2012). It has been estimated that in the industrial countries the United
States has the highest cases of teen pregnancies with about 400,000 births to teen aged 15-
19 in the year 2006 only.Identify, analyze and discuss the causation of the social problem
within the context or framework of each respectiveIn respect to divorce, several factors
have contributed to the significant rise in the number of people divorcing in the United
States and other western countries.Cultural factors, the rates have been increasing during
the 19thcentury due to secularization, this means that the religious aspect of marriage was
lessening more with each marriage that took place. The divinity of the institution soon
faded, with many making it an individual choice rather than a covenant with God. Socio-
2. cultural trends also contributed to divorces especially in 1968-1985 because of the passage
of liberal divorce laws, this made easier divorce laws being promulgated attracting an
increased divorce rate. Trends leading to individualism also harnessed divorce, creating
ideologies of gratification that were sexual and psychological encouraging people to live
happy and full filled lives. Demographic factors such as age social class also causes divorce.
It has been researched that the younger couples get married the more likely they will
divorce, this is because adolescents or young people might not have the maturity to
experience or cope with difficulty that arise from marriage. Social class also affects
marriages, with low income earners facing poverty inherently brings problems related to
poverty and materialism leading to divorces.Child abuse has been recorded for a long time
especially in the fields of literature. There have been reports of mutilation, neglect, and
other forms of violence against minors back to the ancient civilization. WHO describes child
abuse as the maltreatment in terms of physical harm, emotional ill treatment, exploitation
or commercialization of minors in any way that would potentially harm the child survival or
and health. Some of the causes of Child abuse range from sex to resources in the family and
age (United States,1995). The resources and structure of a family greatly affect the chances
of child abuse in the family. In some cases poverty drives the parent or older siblings to
abuse the children in the family, this is by commercialization, sexual abuse, mistreatment
and physical battery. In the case of the family structure, a big family that have minimal
resources tend to struggle to get resources such as food clothing and basic needs might end
up neglecting the younger children since they cannot fend for themselves. In terms of
poverty and family structure, the young ones might end up getting physically or sexually
molested by parents or older siblings due to alcohol and drug abuse that is usually high in
poverty infested family structures(United States, 1995). Cultural aspects also play a major
role in child abuse. In Africa and Asian countries young children are culturally expected to
develop and pick up responsibilities faster as compared to western countries. They might
be subjected to strenuous jobs to contribute to the family income and their up keep.Teen
pregnancies, the population mostly at risk of this social problem is are those that come from
low income families and communities. This is because these kinds of teen are usually
distressed emotionally and psychologically and have very minimal attachment levels with
their parents, guardians or older siblings. This eventually means that the teen are more
exposed to the outside world than they are with their families. They spend more time with
other teen than with mature adults who can offer them advice or give them care. Since the
teens lack any kind of protection or supervision from parents or individuals they might end
up engaging in activities that will eventually get them pregnant. Low income families most
of the time have parents who are in jail, single struggling parents or drug and alcohol habits.
Other situations involve parents who work too hard taking several shifts to make ends
meet. This most of the time leaves the teens under no supervision and might lead to
practicing of premature sex with other teen leading to early pregnancies. Teen pregnancies
can not only be caused by lack of parental care but also due to other social problems like
child abuse, poverty, sexual harassment and rape.Domestic elderly violence can take two
approaches. The first is the more common one that is inflicted by a close family member or
guardian and the second one is institutional where the elderly get mistreated and abused in
3. facilities that carter for the elderly. A lot of research that has been done shows that
members of the family that are involved in substance abuse pose more harm to elderly
people than others. This abuse might be caused by aggression or dominance in the part of
the perpetrator(Thompson, 2006). This kind of aggression can also be brought by poverty,
where the family is financially unable to place the elderly person in a facility and are
probably too busy to care for them. In terms of institutional abuse, which is mostly done by
negligence or lack of privacy for the elderly is cause by under motivated healthcare workers
who often feel taking care of the elderly is cumbersome or a burden. They therefore end up
neglecting them. Institutions can also abuse elderly in case they themselves have been
neglected by the families that brought them to the facility. The facility tends to neglect them
since no one regular checks on the elderly person from the outside.Identify and discuss
solutions to the social problemSocial problems are a significant feature in the society and as
discussed in this study are cause by various challenges that people are facing in the
community including drug and substance abuse, poverty, cultural and societal factors.Teen
pregnancyResearch has been done to ascertain to what can be done to prevent and act as a
solution to teenage pregnancies and most programs show that social workers need to focus
on reproductive health such as HIV and sex programs to help reduce the rates of teenage
pregnancies(Watkins, 2009). These programs are eventfully successful since they enable
the young adults get incites on issues to deal with sex, and consequences of premeditated
sexual activities that could lead to HIV.Domestic ViolenceDomestic violence can be solved
by sensitizing the community on the effects of domestic violence especially to young
children. Rehabilitation centers and social campaigns can be carried out to assist reform
members of the society who are perpetrators of these violent acts. It is important to note
that dealing with the drug and substance abuse will significantly help reduce domestic
violence since statistics show that it is the leading vice in domestic violence in the United
States. Toll free numbers can also be enforced to report cases of domestic violence
especially in the projects and poor communities.Elderly ViolenceElderly violence as
discussed before iscarried out by close members of the family or it can also be institutional.
Therefore, to be able to deal with this social problem, the individual caring for the elderly
have to be cancelled or offered training on how to take care of elder people. Since some of
the offences carried out on elderly people are deliberate, strict laws should be enforced on
the authorities on how to deal with cases of elderly brutality or violence. Healthcare
facilities or centers that care for elderly people should also be well equipped to ease the
pressure or f fatigue cause by those who take care of the elderly. It has been noted that
some of the centers lack proper facilities to take care of the elderly leading the staff to be
negligent of the elderly. The centers should also make followups on the locations of the
relatives of the elderly person so that they are not abandoned in the retirement homes to
face elderly violence by the staff.DivorceDivorce is more of a family affair and as discussed
before, more sensitization should be done to young couples to know what is expected of
marriage before rushing into it. The community should also be educated through media
campaigns and rallies on the importance of keeping a steady marriage. These can be done
by marriage counselors, psychiatrists and social workers. Importance of marriage can be
best enforced at an early age probably in the curriculum in schools so that young people can
4. grow up with the maturity of learning how to cope with the difficulties that marriage
presents.Response to the solutions to social problems.A lot has been done to help curb
social problems in the society, and more over a lot of campaigns and enforcement strategies
are at play in solving social problems. In regard to teenage pregnancies, the statistics show
that there is a significant increase of teenagers involving themselves in community based
projects to help stop the social problem, this means that the solution is in progress and the
message has been well received. Sex education and reproductive health sensitization both
at school and at home have been enforce especially in the united states, where children in
schools are involved in compulsory sex education classes, this has significantly helped in
reducing the number of teenage pregnancies(Baker, 2011).Domestic and elderly violence
have also been taken seriously with the community, according to law enforcers, there have
been a lot of cases being reported of domestic and elderly violence through the toll free
numbers. This has significantly helped reduce the extent to which the violence can escalate
if not stopped immediately. In cases of divorce it is an obvious fact that marriage counselors
are getting more clients than before this is a clear indication that more couples are taking
marriage seriously and would rather see a counselor that opt for divorce.The case of social
problems is an important societal issue that need to be taken seriously by the authorities
and more so by the government. More policies should be introduced to ensure that some of
the problems are contained. Cases of child abuse should not be a problem in this particular
era, therefore people should be sensitized on how to deal with social problems to make the
community a better place(Watkins,2009). Poverty, drug and substance abuse is also a
serious vice in the society and serious effort should in place to deal with
it.ReferencesBuzawa, E. S., Buzawa, C. G., Stark, E., &Buzawa, E. S. (2012). Responding to
domestic violence: The integration of criminal justice and human services.Dolgon, C., &
Baker, C. (2011). Social problems: A service learning approach. Los Angeles: Sage/Pine
Forge.Henslin, J. M. (2007). Down to earth sociology: Introductory readings. New York: Free
Press.Thompson, T. (2006). The elderly. Farmington Hills, MI: Greenhaven.United States.
(1995). A Nation’ s shame: Fatal child abuse and neglect in the United States: a report of the
U.S. Advisory Board on Child Abuse and Neglect: fifth report. Washington, D.C: The
Board.Watkins, H. (2009). Child abuse. Detroit: Greenhaven Press.
