It Takes a Village: The Effects of Familial Financial Support on Children Raised by Single Mothers

Of the twenty-four million children in the United States living in single-parent households, approximately half are living in poverty. Single-mother households earn, on average, sixty thousand dollars less per year than married households and only one-third of single mothers receive child support. The conditions fostered by low-income single motherhood can have damaging effects on children in these homes. The stress caused by food insecurity, the threat of homelessness, and high child care costs can drastically change the way a mother parents.

It is the effect of this stress on child development that Jeong-Kyun Choi and Ho-Soon Pyun seek to understand. In their recent study, they examine the impact of child support payments from estranged fathers and financial support from friends and family on maternal stress and child development.

The goal of the study is to build on previous research that suggests that child support has a significant effect on behavioral problems and academic success. That research has also found that more economic resources reduce maternal distress, which should produce better parenting and child outcomes. However, as the researchers noted, the previous research is not without its flaws: for example, researchers have tended to focus on middle-, rather than low-, income households. Unlike the prior research, this study looks exclusively at low-income families, measures the effects of child support on both maternal stress and child outcomes, and examines the effect of family and friends on these factors, all of which are unique characteristics of this study.

Choi and Pyun use a sample of data from the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing (FFCW) Study, which includes interviews with both parents at the time of the child’s birth and at ages one, three, and five years. They also visit the children’s homes at ages three and five years to assess the environment and parenting behavior.

To do so, the researchers ask mothers to self-report answers to several questions. First, mothers are asked to report the level of financial assistance from the father over the child’s life and the level of informal support from family and friends, including loans and offers of housing. These data points, in conjunction with reports of maternal incomes and government assistance, explain mothers’ levels of economic hardship. A second set of variables is then measured to help determine the impact of that economic hardship on child outcomes. Through more self-report measures, the researchers collect data on maternal parenting stress and child behavior by completing home visits and measuring the child’s cognitive development through testing.

The researchers find that financial support from fathers and instrumental support from family and friends can significantly impact child outcomes. Specifically, children who receive financial support from their fathers when they are one year old have fewer behavioral problems and greater cognitive development four years later. This financial support also reduces levels of maternal stress as the child grows older. Furthermore, instrumental support from family and friends produced similar, if not slightly stronger, effects on stress and quality of maternal care. From these results, the researchers conclude that financial support from fathers, other family members, and friends can significantly benefit children’s behavioral and developmental outcomes.

Though these findings probably do not come as a surprise, it is worth noting some potential reasons for skepticism. For example, the sample used for the study was not representative of the population of single mothers: the authors look specifically at low-income and African American mothers who have attained minimal education.

In addition, most of the data are collected through self-report measures. Self-report has inherent problems, especially when asking someone to recall how much money they have received in child support over the course of the child’s life or whether they’ve gone hungry. This method can produce biased and inaccurate results, as mothers may have difficulty remembering information from years ago or divulging compromising information that may get reported to Child and Family Services.

Overall, however, the results corroborate what many already believe: relieving low-income single parent mothers of economic hardship can help them be better parents and support better outcomes for their children. It is for this reason that we would expect interventions that encourage paternal financial responsibility and help fathers to obtain and retain jobs to be successful in improving outcomes for children living with low-income single mothers.

Article Source:  Choi, Jeong-Kyun, and Ho-Soon Pyun. “Nonresident fathers’ financial support, informal instrumental support, mothers’ parenting, and child development in single-mother families with low income.” Journal of Family Issues 35, no. 4 (2014): 526-546.

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