Interestingly, most parents' strong feelings about this issue do not seem to carry
over to their views on responsibility in their teen's life (Exhibit 7.2). In considering
several aspects of their child's life (such as their safety, health, happiness, getting a
good education, and learning about different jobs and careers) parents consistently
say that they are most responsible, and not their teens. Overall, mothers and fathers
do not differ in these views, although fathers are more likely than mothers to say that
they are most responsible for their child's learning about different jobs and careers
(61% vs. 47%). The child's gender does not seem to influence parents' views either,
although parents of girls are slightly more likely than parents of boys to think that
they are most responsible for their teen's safety (95% vs. 88%).
Exhibit 7.2
Parents' Views on Own Responsibilities
Q535 The MOST responsible for each of the following: Parent
Base: Secondary school parents
Parent's Gender Child's Gender
Total
Male
Female
Boy
Girl
Base . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .855
242 . . .613
442 . . .413
%
%
%
%
%
Your child's safety . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .91
92 . . . .91
88 . . . .95
Your child's getting a good education . . .66
65 . . . .67
67 . . . .65
Your child's health . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .93
95 . . . .91
93 . . . .93
Your child's learning about
different jobs and careers . . . . . . . . . . .54
61 . . . .47
56 . . . .50
Your child's happiness . . . . . . . . . . . . . .64
66 . . . .62
64 . . . .63
In contrast, at least half of secondary school students feel that they are most
responsible for these different aspects of their lives (Exhibit 7.3). In fact, three-quar-
ters of students think that they are most responsible when it comes to their health
(72%) and happiness (77%). Boys and girls are equally likely to feel responsible for
these areas, with the exception of safety for which boys are more likely than girls to
feel most responsible (59% vs. 46%). Students' quality of life is related to some of
students' views on responsibility. For the purposes of this analysis, quality of life is
defined by such characteristics as having a lot of friends, getting along with parents,
being happy at school, feeling safe, being bored, feeling sad and unhappy and getting
into trouble a lot. Students with a low quality of life are more likely than those with
a high quality of life to feel most responsible for their safety (55% vs. 47%) and learn-
ing about different jobs and careers (54% vs. 47%).
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