How many children are considered too many for a couple to have?

Jump to Last Post 1-7 of 7 discussions (8 posts)
  1. daydreamer13 profile image60
    daydreamer13posted 10 years ago

    How many children are considered too many for a couple to have?

    https://usercontent1.hubstatic.com/9092572_f260.jpg

  2. Sky321 profile image82
    Sky321posted 10 years ago

    I don't think there is a number but maybe it would depend on their circumstances. I heard my mother and grandma talking about people who came from families of 20. LOL. I can't imagine but to each is own.

  3. ChristinS profile image37
    ChristinSposted 10 years ago

    I think in many instances larger families are inclined to have problems.  Once you get beyond a few children, the one on one parental attention wanes, older children have to start caring for the younger ones etc.  There's also the need to be able to provide for all of them, and in modern times, college degrees are expensive and don't go as far as they used to.  There are so many things to consider and there is no "blanket answer". 

    Some families are better able to manage large numbers, but I have a family member who has 9 and refuses to stop.  She cannot care for all of them properly and burdens the grandparents with helping to raise them all.  The father won't keep a job and she has to work and they are in poverty. Their grades are awful, one of the oldest ones is just this side of functionally illiterate and is still about to graduate high school (that's a whole other subject) and it's all because she is ill equipped to raise a huge family and meet all of their needs.  She loves the attention she gets from having such a large brood though.

      I get upset with her because she doesn't seem to mind burdening others due to her belief that God is blessing her with them, when it's actually a biological function she could control if she chose to. She is being irresponsible bringing more children into the world that she cannot afford or attend to all of their basic needs.

    Are all large families like this? No, but it sure makes it hard for each child to get the solid start they need in life, the education, the parental involvement etc.  I am thankful I came from a small family every time I look at hers.

    1. gmwilliams profile image83
      gmwilliamsposted 10 years agoin reply to this

      ChristinS, you are succinct as usual in your analysis on large families.  I believe that a couple should have 1 or 2 children, maybe 3 or 4 children.  Anything beyond this is purely inane. Parents can't effectively raise a large number of  children!

  4. Express10 profile image77
    Express10posted 10 years ago

    Any number that they did not plan for and are not emotionally stable enough for and financially prepared for. For some people this number would be as little as one child, for others it could be several. I think very large families are not best for children because even if money is plentiful for that family the hours in the day to provide consistent and abundant quality time and guidance are often not.

  5. dashingscorpio profile image72
    dashingscorpioposted 10 years ago

    If a couple cannot afford to feed, clothe, and provide for educational, medical, and dental needs as well as spend (time) nurturing their children they probably have too many.

  6. fetty profile image65
    fettyposted 10 years ago

    Depends upon the couple!  This is one of those thought provoking questions that really have no black or white answer.  If the couple can't provide the basic needs of the children and can't provide quality time with each child , this time would be determined by the needs of each child and would vary for each child; and if the couple is not comfortable with fulfilling those needs, then they have too many!  This could be true for a family of one up to 12 children , let's  say.  I have personally witnessed emotionally drained families of one  and wonderfully  vibrant families of eleven.  This all depends upon the dedication and love of the parents and of the children involved.

  7. gmwilliams profile image83
    gmwilliamsposted 10 years ago

    https://usercontent2.hubstatic.com/11948001_f260.jpg

    I believe that couples (if they want children) should have the amount that they can comfortably care for financially, emotionally, and psychologically.  It is important for couples to have a stable, sustaining career in order to afford their children a socioeconomic life beyond rudimentary existence. If a person is socioeconomically poor, he/she shouldn't have children. I further assert that a couple should have either a small(1-2 kids per family) or medium sized(3-4 kids per family). In small & medium sized families, parents have adequate span of control & children receive individualized parental attention, love,& time. There are more monies allotted per child in smaller families.

    In large families of 6 or more children per family, there is little or no parental attention.  Children have to raise themselves & each other.  Children are forced to become adults/taking on adult responsibilities during childhood such as parenting & working.  Poverty is a commonplace occurrence in large families. Children have to work to supplement family income & get the things that other children have. Children in large families have to forgo secondary/tertiary education to work to support their families. Even if wealthy, large families are wrong as some children will receive attention while others will be neglected.  Small families(1-2 kids per family) are best all around for children's in terms of socioeconomics, parental attention, emotional well-being & opportunities.  Medium-sized(3-4 kids per family) provide that large family atmosphere w/o the suffering & deprivation which is typical of large families.

 
working

This website uses cookies

As a user in the EEA, your approval is needed on a few things. To provide a better website experience, hubpages.com uses cookies (and other similar technologies) and may collect, process, and share personal data. Please choose which areas of our service you consent to our doing so.

For more information on managing or withdrawing consents and how we handle data, visit our Privacy Policy at: https://corp.maven.io/privacy-policy

Show Details
Necessary
HubPages Device IDThis is used to identify particular browsers or devices when the access the service, and is used for security reasons.
LoginThis is necessary to sign in to the HubPages Service.
Google RecaptchaThis is used to prevent bots and spam. (Privacy Policy)
AkismetThis is used to detect comment spam. (Privacy Policy)
HubPages Google AnalyticsThis is used to provide data on traffic to our website, all personally identifyable data is anonymized. (Privacy Policy)
HubPages Traffic PixelThis is used to collect data on traffic to articles and other pages on our site. Unless you are signed in to a HubPages account, all personally identifiable information is anonymized.
Amazon Web ServicesThis is a cloud services platform that we used to host our service. (Privacy Policy)
CloudflareThis is a cloud CDN service that we use to efficiently deliver files required for our service to operate such as javascript, cascading style sheets, images, and videos. (Privacy Policy)
Google Hosted LibrariesJavascript software libraries such as jQuery are loaded at endpoints on the googleapis.com or gstatic.com domains, for performance and efficiency reasons. (Privacy Policy)
Features
Google Custom SearchThis is feature allows you to search the site. (Privacy Policy)
Google MapsSome articles have Google Maps embedded in them. (Privacy Policy)
Google ChartsThis is used to display charts and graphs on articles and the author center. (Privacy Policy)
Google AdSense Host APIThis service allows you to sign up for or associate a Google AdSense account with HubPages, so that you can earn money from ads on your articles. No data is shared unless you engage with this feature. (Privacy Policy)
Google YouTubeSome articles have YouTube videos embedded in them. (Privacy Policy)
VimeoSome articles have Vimeo videos embedded in them. (Privacy Policy)
PaypalThis is used for a registered author who enrolls in the HubPages Earnings program and requests to be paid via PayPal. No data is shared with Paypal unless you engage with this feature. (Privacy Policy)
Facebook LoginYou can use this to streamline signing up for, or signing in to your Hubpages account. No data is shared with Facebook unless you engage with this feature. (Privacy Policy)
MavenThis supports the Maven widget and search functionality. (Privacy Policy)
Marketing
Google AdSenseThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Google DoubleClickGoogle provides ad serving technology and runs an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Index ExchangeThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
SovrnThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Facebook AdsThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Amazon Unified Ad MarketplaceThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
AppNexusThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
OpenxThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Rubicon ProjectThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
TripleLiftThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Say MediaWe partner with Say Media to deliver ad campaigns on our sites. (Privacy Policy)
Remarketing PixelsWe may use remarketing pixels from advertising networks such as Google AdWords, Bing Ads, and Facebook in order to advertise the HubPages Service to people that have visited our sites.
Conversion Tracking PixelsWe may use conversion tracking pixels from advertising networks such as Google AdWords, Bing Ads, and Facebook in order to identify when an advertisement has successfully resulted in the desired action, such as signing up for the HubPages Service or publishing an article on the HubPages Service.
Statistics
Author Google AnalyticsThis is used to provide traffic data and reports to the authors of articles on the HubPages Service. (Privacy Policy)
ComscoreComScore is a media measurement and analytics company providing marketing data and analytics to enterprises, media and advertising agencies, and publishers. Non-consent will result in ComScore only processing obfuscated personal data. (Privacy Policy)
Amazon Tracking PixelSome articles display amazon products as part of the Amazon Affiliate program, this pixel provides traffic statistics for those products (Privacy Policy)
ClickscoThis is a data management platform studying reader behavior (Privacy Policy)