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False Statements to Congress
By The "Experts"
On June 6th, 95, Donald N. Bersoff, Ph.D., J.D. testified before
the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee, Youth Violence Subcommittee, on behalf
of the American Psychological Association, to whit:
"Although it is true that children reared in single-parent
families are at greater risk for violent and aggressive behavior than children
reared in two-parent families, this explanation is far too simplistic and
is destined to fail to produce solutions. A s the APA Commission on Violence
and Youth concludes, the problem of youth violence is complex and multiply
determined. Risk factors such as out-of-wedlock birth interact with a multitude
of other factors to enhance or reduce risk for violence. Consider, for
example, that regardless of whether one or both parents are present, the
risk for violence increases greatly among boys reared in lower income households."
To President Clinton, The Senate Republican Policy Committee, and The
APA Public Policy Office:
RE: Donald N. Bersoff, Ph.D.
On Behalf of the APA before the
U.S. Senate; Judiciary Committee -
Youth Violence Subcommittee
June 6, 1995
I (we) the undersigned strongly object to the testimony given on
behalf of the APA that implicitly suggests that Father Absence/Marriage
is a minor factor in youth violence (pathology), and that Poverty is the
single most important factor. This is sim ply not true.
Three factors consistently demonstrate the Primacy of Father Absence:
1.) YOUTH PATHOLOGY IN FATHER-ABSENT (Mother-headed, Single parent)
HOMES:
Youth's are:
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- 5 times more likely to commit suicide (63%). |
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- 32 times more likely to run away (90%). |
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- 20 times mroe likely to have behavioral disorders (85%). |
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- 9 times more likely to drop out of high school (71%). |
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- 10 times more likely to abuse chemical substances (75%). |
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- 9 times more likely to be admitted to a juvenile institution (70%). |
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- 20 times more likely to end up in prison (85%). * (*COMPARE THIS TO
1% FROM SINGLE-FATHER HOMES) |
2.) MOST (>80%) SINGLE-PARENT HOMES ARE FEMALE-HEADED:
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- 60% of child-abuse perpetrators are women with sole custody. |
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- 65% - 80% of divorces are originated by females. |
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- Allegations of "child abuse" in custody cases (against fathers, have
exploded by at least 2000%. In more than 85% of the cases, these charges
are false. |
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- Welfare expenditures, Teen Suicide, and Juvenile arrests have increased
proportionally to the reduction in marriages between 1980 and 1992. |
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- Depression and other mental illnesses occur 2 to 4 times more often
in single individuals than in married partners. |
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- Alcoholism is 2-3 times more prevalent in single and divorced individuals
than in married partners. |
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- Child abuse is far more common in cohabiting relationships than in
marriage. |
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- Heavy drinking and cigarette smoking are twice as likely in the children
of divorce vs those from an intact family. |
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- Single women are five times more likely to be battered than married
women. |
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- Young women are less likely to marry in direct proportion to father
absence, at a rate of 5% less likely for each year the father was absent. |
3.) POVERTY:
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