The divorce for Helen meant the loss of a companion. To cope with this she tried to find companionship in her children. This made parenting and discipline difficult. Helen had a lot of stress and issues herself, and had no one to really share it with or help her through it. "It's not easy for parents to lay down the law after divorce. Not only are they emotionally exhausted, they're reluctant to come down too hard on a child who has been through the breakup" (Fredericks 1). There are reports that show that single parents show lower levels of monitoring and discipline than married parents do. Single parents also seem to make fewer demands on the children and utilize less effective disciplinary strategies (Simons et al. 1). Helen'

The depression and confusion were a lot for Gary to handle. He had no one to talk to. He needed the father that wasn't there. Many studies have shown the importance of the father in the psychological development of children and adolescents. They have also shown that a "big-brother" figure can substitute for the male role model they would have had in their father. Saintonge found that the "big-brother" relationship "promoted integration of the aggressive drive, the maturation of the male identity, a healthy distancing from the mother, as well as better peer relationships (2)". In Gary's case Todd acted as that big brother. Todd talked to Gary and helped him understand about his sexuality and that he was normal. It gave him someone to mess around with and "play catch with." The "big brother" also helps lower levels of depression (Saintonge 3). Which was evident with Gary in the film when Todd came around. The divorce was tough on Gary and caused him problems that stu!

Research has shown that males have a greater tendency to have behavioral problems than females. It may be that males understand the danger of low parental control and interpret it as an absence of parental concern and caring (Simon et al. 10). Helen's lack of discipline and effective parenting was caused by her want of companionship in her children. This effected Helen and her children in a negative manner.

s daughter Julie does not listen to her. She continues to have a relationship with Todd disregarding her mother's advice. Helen also has relatively no jurisdiction over Gary he never listens to her or talk to her about troubles he is having. !

When Helen started to date she saw that it was beneficial. It made her happy, which alleviated some of the stress that she had. It gave her an adult to converse with. It also provided a positive male role model for her son Gary. Helen struggled with the issue of not having a companion. Her not having a companion was not only a problem for her but caused tribulations for her children also.

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The discipline was gone from the household. Julie also saw the bad example that her father had set by h

Some common words found in the essay are:
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Approximate Word count = 1496
Approximate Pages = 6 (250 words per page double spaced)