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Informal Networks of Low‐Income Mothers: Support, Burden, and Change
Author(s) -
Radey Melissa,
McWey Lenore M.
Publication year - 2019
Publication title -
journal of marriage and family
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.578
H-Index - 159
eISSN - 1741-3737
pISSN - 0022-2445
DOI - 10.1111/jomf.12573
Subject(s) - poverty , welfare , child support , social support , income support , low income , psychology , household income , fragile families and child wellbeing study , demographic economics , gerontology , developmental psychology , medicine , economic growth , economics , political science , social psychology , geography , law , market economy , archaeology , macroeconomics
Objective The authors examined the support and burden of low‐income, urban mothers' informal networks. Background Living or growing up in poverty strongly predicts barriers and instability across several life domains for mothers and their children. Informal networks can play a critical role in promoting maternal and child well‐being particularly in the midst of poverty. Understanding informal support and the reciprocal burden it may create is especially relevant for low‐income families living with a reduced public safety net in the post–welfare reform era. Therefore, study aims were to measure support and burden among low‐income mothers and determine if support and burden change over time. Method Data were from the Welfare, Children, Families project, a longitudinal study of 2,400 low‐income caregivers of children and adolescents living in Boston, Chicago, or San Antonio. We applied latent class analyses to support and burden indicators in four domains—emotional, favor, child care, and financial. Results The results supported the following four profiles of informal networks: healthy, unhealthy, burden only, and support only. Although most mothers had healthy informal networks, approximately one third experienced no support or support imbalance, which related to network changes at later time points. Demographic characteristics largely were not predictive of support profile or profile change. Conclusion Although many mothers had healthy support and burden, the most vulnerable did not have consistently healthy informal networks. The identification of a sizable minority of low‐income mothers who cannot consistently rely on informal support is significant in light of the diminished formal supports available to children and families.