Sometimes mothers have to move to find a neighborhood that can fit their lifestyle and financial situation. Children living with single parents are exposed to more stressful experiences and circumstances than children living with continuously married parents. Although scholars define stress in slightly different ways, most believe that it occurs when external demands exceed people's coping resources. This results in feelings of emotional distress, a reduced ability to function in school, work, and family roles, and increased physiological indicators of arousal. Many single parents, however, find it difficult to function effectively as parents. Compared to lifelong married parents, they are less emotionally supportive of their children, have fewer rules, dispense harsher discipline, are more inconsistent in dispensing discipline, provide less supervision, and have more conflict with their children.