What is a Deadbeat Father
A deadbeat father is a term for the biological father who does not show up when the child needs him. A deadbeat father is not a good dad. He is not involved when the child needs his help. Usually the term deadbeat father is used for fathers who are already separated from his wives and children.
Such fathers have different preferences in their lives and usually the child has the same psychological issues as that of a child who has lost his father at an early age. Legally the child might be under his custody, or in some cases, the child might need his father’s assistance after the separation of both parents. However, due to other priorities in life, deadbeat fathers rarely care or ask for the child’s growth and life patterns.
5 SIGNS OF A DEADBEAT FATHER:
1. A Deadbeat Father Emotionally Neglects his Child:
Out of all the intimacies required for a child’s growth and development, the basic key is the emotional support from both of the parents. Children who lack love in the initial phases of life are usually depressed and find it hard to put love in the other relationships they are about to make.
Absence of emotional support might provoke their disturbed life towards mentally unstable conditions usually resulting in severe depression and the attempts of suicide because of depression. Lack of care and emotional support of a deadbeat dad has very serious drawbacks especially when the mother is a neglecting one as well.
2. Financial Support:
Usually when a couple with children decides to separate, the dispute of parenting arises. Usually it is overcomed by accepting the court decision of child’s custody as per the age and gender of child, and emotional stability of mother and father. Sometimes, financial duty is assigned to the father for the collaborative brought up of the child. A deadbeat father is very irresponsible when it comes to taking the duty of financial support of his own child.
Such fathers do not provide the basic rights of their child and as a result the child becomes the burden of the caregivers. It is common that kids of such fathers usually end up in the orphanages when a mother is not alive or fails to raise them properly. Sometimes such children can fall a prey to child labour and ultimately child abuse.
3. Not attending the Child’s Special Events:
Fathers who are deadbeat are not interested in their child’s life progress and are always a question mark when it is their special occasions. Usually in co-parenting, both parents have to coordinate for the better growth of the child, although this leads to incomplete child’s growth but a neglectful father rarely knows the age of his own child.
Parents Teacher Meet up, or birthdays, a deadbeat father is not concerned about even a single matter related to his family. It is common that such kids only use their father’s surname for the sake of identity.
4. Lack of Communication:
It is obvious that sometimes the child wants to dig out the “lost father”. It might be a child’s initiative to communicate with the father that is rarely seen around him. However, such fathers rarely respond to the phone calls and text messages of his own child. Lack of communication might create complete misunderstandings at the child end, where there is always a missing space for the father.
Even in reunions, the father rarely communicates with the child, usually in courtroom or accidental encounters. Such neglectful fathers rarely understand the needs of their children and are always busy in their lives.
5. Bitter Speech or Blame Game when asked to Complete his Duty:
Sometimes a deadbeat father can be very abusive as well. Especially at times when he is asked for his basic duties. Use of abusive language, avoiding the topic, hate speech for the ex-partner and kids, is the routine of such fathers. Sometimes a deadbeat father can play victim by blaming the child or his ex-partner for not initiating the relationship with him.
However, they never accept their fault and always count the minimum good they did at their initial phases of life. Such fathers are abusive and might yell at their children too.
The consequences of such parenting can be really serious.
CONSEQUENCES OF A DEADBEAT FATHER
Deadbeat Fatherhood is very negative and can be the initial baseline cause of hate and mental disorders among children. It is well known that daughters and sons who faced early negligence are always looking forward to approval from society.
Following are 5 consequences that are commonly associated with deadbeat fathers.
1. Lack of Affection for the Father:
Trauma can never be neglected when it is associated with childhood. Such trauma feeds on a child’s abilities and keeps discouraging them for a lifetime. Kids who have deadbeat fathers always suffer from an inferiority complex, especially when such kids observe the happy families around them. This can be very difficult for them to accept that their father doesn’t care about their existence.
2. Psychological Disorders of the Children:
Psychological malfunctioning is very common. Such kids are insecure adults, who cannot trust anyone and are not able to differentiate between right and wrong kinds of love relationships. They are at high risk of suicide and can do anything to gain attention and approval from their surroundings.
3. Legal Actions against Father:
Legally this is a crime to be neglectful of your own child. In some countries, the father is accountable for his such neglectful attitude and might face fines and imprisonment.
4. Regret:
Fathers usually unaware of their kids might regret later on for not concentrating on their children. Kids rarely have any emotions for their fathers later on.
5. Social Stigma for both Father and Children:
Though it is a stigma for the kids as a question mark on their father, similarly the father needs to be accountable for his behaviour as well! Society pressure can disturb both of them as well.
