Social
Problems
| Home |
Families |
Welfare
System |
Education |
Culture |
Organizations |
Vocabulary |
Other
Countries |
Although
Norwegian children have a far better life than those of underdeveloped
nations they still face a number of social problems.
Family Disintegration
Family Disintegration
Like many
countries of today Norway is experiencing a decrease in the stability
of marriage. On top of this, cohabitation
has become much more acceptable and as a result more children are being
born
into consensual unions.
This trend understandably has a number of implications for the children
involved. First off, these unions have
proved to be less stable then marriages.
A divorce of this kind, although it may not mean much legally, still
has
a negative impact on the children.
Ageing Population
Like most of Europe, Norway faces an increasingly large elderly population while the percentage of young people continues to dwindle. Children from ages 0-14 now only make up about 20 percent of the population as compared to 35 percent in 1900. This decreased share of the population has a negative implication for children. Since children, like the elderly, are not part of the workforce, they must compete for funds provided both by the government and by family members. Clearly a middle aged parent who now has to take care of their ageing parents will have less time and money with which to take care of their children. Similarly the government must now decide whether to allocate funds to things like health care for the elderly or schools for young people. Nevertheless, Norway has one of the highest fertility rates in Europe and therefore has less of a problem with ageing then most European countries. All of these things create problems for children as well as the rest of the population.
Refugees
Although they are not Norwegian born, there is a group of asylum seeking refugees who continue to be neglected by Norwegian government. These children come from numerous countries such as Afghanistan Iraq and Somalia. When they, like the 424 who came in 2004 alone, arrive in Norway, they are placed in asylum centers. Here, they unfortunately do not receive any of the children's welfare programs that natives do. Also they have very little in terms of legal protection. Also, a lack of funding has caused some children and their families to remain in these supposedly temporary centers for upwards of three years.
Abuse
A small percentage of Norway's children face a very serious problem in the form of sexual and physical abuse. Between 5 and 10% of norwegian children experience some form of sexual abuse. Repetitive domestic violence also affects nearly 100,000 children. Children also experience abuse from peers as 5% report being bullied at school. Norway attempts to combat these problems through a number of welfare agencies. In 2004, over 37,000 children received some form of assistance from the Child Welfare Service. Nearly 7,000 of these children were placed into protective custody such as foster homes.
Pedersen,
Willy and Kristinn Hegna. 2003. “Children and adolescents who sell sex:
a
community study.” Social Science and Medicine 56:135-147.
Ageing Population
Like most of Europe, Norway faces an increasingly large elderly population while the percentage of young people continues to dwindle. Children from ages 0-14 now only make up about 20 percent of the population as compared to 35 percent in 1900. This decreased share of the population has a negative implication for children. Since children, like the elderly, are not part of the workforce, they must compete for funds provided both by the government and by family members. Clearly a middle aged parent who now has to take care of their ageing parents will have less time and money with which to take care of their children. Similarly the government must now decide whether to allocate funds to things like health care for the elderly or schools for young people. Nevertheless, Norway has one of the highest fertility rates in Europe and therefore has less of a problem with ageing then most European countries. All of these things create problems for children as well as the rest of the population.
Refugees
Although they are not Norwegian born, there is a group of asylum seeking refugees who continue to be neglected by Norwegian government. These children come from numerous countries such as Afghanistan Iraq and Somalia. When they, like the 424 who came in 2004 alone, arrive in Norway, they are placed in asylum centers. Here, they unfortunately do not receive any of the children's welfare programs that natives do. Also they have very little in terms of legal protection. Also, a lack of funding has caused some children and their families to remain in these supposedly temporary centers for upwards of three years.
Abuse
A small percentage of Norway's children face a very serious problem in the form of sexual and physical abuse. Between 5 and 10% of norwegian children experience some form of sexual abuse. Repetitive domestic violence also affects nearly 100,000 children. Children also experience abuse from peers as 5% report being bullied at school. Norway attempts to combat these problems through a number of welfare agencies. In 2004, over 37,000 children received some form of assistance from the Child Welfare Service. Nearly 7,000 of these children were placed into protective custody such as foster homes.
References
Jensen, An-Magritt and Sten-Erik Clausen. 2003. "Children and Family Dissolution in Norway: The Impact of Consensual Unions." Childhood 10(1):65-81.
Borge, Anne I. H. and Edward C. Melhuish. 1995. "A Longitudinal Study of Childhood Behaviour Problems, Maternal Employment, and Day Care in a Rural Norwegian Community." International Journal of Behavioral Development 18(1):23-42.
Jensen, An-Magritt, Anne Trine Kjorholt, Jens Qvortrup, and Monda Sandboek with Vegard Johansen and Tonje Lauritzen. 2004. "Childhood and Generation in Norway: Money, Time and Space." Pp. 335-402 in Children's Welfare in Ageing Europe, vol. 1, edited by An-Magritt Jensen, Asher Ben-Arieh, Cinzia Conti, Dagmar Kutsar, Maire Nic Ghiolla Phadraig, and Hanne Warming Nielsen. Trondheim, Norway: Norwegian Centre for Child Research.Jensen, An-Magritt and Sten-Erik Clausen. 2003. "Children and Family Dissolution in Norway: The Impact of Consensual Unions." Childhood 10(1):65-81.