IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/sae/anname/v702y2022i1p236-251.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Effective Policies for Single-Parent Families and Prospects for Policy Reforms in the United States: Concluding Reflections

Author

Listed:
  • Janet C. Gornick
  • Laurie C. Maldonado
  • Amanda Sheely

Abstract

This conclusion engages two questions catalyzed by the articles in this volume. First, which policies are effective in reducing economic hardship among single-parent families overall and minimizing disparities across subgroups? Second, what are the prospects for related reforms in the United States? We draw four lessons from the articles in this volume and from prior research about effective policy design: (1) work-family reconciliation policies are crucial; (2) strengthening and stabilizing employment is necessary, but not sufficient; (3) it is important to support the accumulation of wealth in addition to shoring up income; and (4) policies can be designed to include and protect those single parents and their children who are especially at risk. Turning to the feasibility of policy change in the United States, we conclude that some factors—especially policy elements that encourage self-reliance, shifting public opinion, the COVID-19 crisis, and federalism itself—may enhance opportunities for policy development in support of single parents.

Suggested Citation

  • Janet C. Gornick & Laurie C. Maldonado & Amanda Sheely, 2022. "Effective Policies for Single-Parent Families and Prospects for Policy Reforms in the United States: Concluding Reflections," The ANNALS of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, , vol. 702(1), pages 236-251, July.
    • Handle: RePEc:sae:anname:v:702:y:2022:i:1:p:236-251
    DOI: 10.1177/00027162221133682
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/00027162221133682
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1177/00027162221133682?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Anna Aizer & Hilary W. Hoynes & Adriana Lleras-Muney, 2022. "Children and the US Social Safety Net: Balancing Disincentives for Adults and Benefits for Children," NBER Working Papers 29754, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    2. Markus J ntti & Janet Gornick, 2009. "Child Poverty in Upper-Income Countries: Lessons from the Luxembourg Income Study," LIS Working papers 509, LIS Cross-National Data Center in Luxembourg.
    3. Janet Gornick & Eva Sierminska, 2021. "Wealth Accumulation and Retirement Preparedness in Cross-National Perspective: A Gendered Analysis of Outcomes among Single Adults," LWS Working papers 36, LIS Cross-National Data Center in Luxembourg.
    4. Joakim Palme & Walter Korpi, 1998. "The Paradox of Redistribution and Strategies of Equality: Welfare State Institutions, Inequality and Poverty in the Western Countries," LIS Working papers 174, LIS Cross-National Data Center in Luxembourg.
    5. Anna Aizer & Hilary Hoynes & Adriana Lleras-Muney, 2022. "Children and the US Social Safety Net: Balancing Disincentives for Adults and Benefits for Children," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 36(2), pages 149-174, Spring.
    6. David Brady & Rebekah Burroway, 2012. "Targeting, Universalism, and Single-Mother Poverty: A Multilevel Analysis Across 18 Affluent Democracies," Demography, Springer;Population Association of America (PAA), vol. 49(2), pages 719-746, May.
    7. Sarah Marchal & Wim Van Lancker, 2019. "The Measurement of Targeting Design in Complex Welfare States: A Proposal and Empirical Applications," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 143(2), pages 693-726, June.
    8. Lersch, Philipp M. & Grabka, Markus M. & Rüß, Kilian & Schröder, Carsten, 2021. "Wealth of children from single-parent families: Low levels and high inequality in Germany," EconStor Open Access Articles and Book Chapters, ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics, vol. 31(5), pages 565-579.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Elise Aerts & Ive Marx & Zachary Parolin, 2022. "Income Support Policies for Single Parents in Europe and the United States: What Works Best?," The ANNALS of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, , vol. 702(1), pages 55-76, July.
    2. Laurie C. Maldonado & Rense Nieuwenhuis, 2014. "Family Policies and Single Parent Poverty in 18 OECD Countries, 1978-2008," LIS Working papers 622, LIS Cross-National Data Center in Luxembourg.
    3. Cheng Lin & Adel Daoud & Maria Branden, 2022. "To What Extent Do Disadvantaged Neighborhoods Mediate Social Assistance Dependency? Evidence from Sweden," Papers 2206.04773, arXiv.org, revised Aug 2022.
    4. Bruch, Sarah K. & van der Naald, Joseph & Gornick, Janet C., 2022. "Poverty Reduction through Federal and State Policy Mechanisms: Variation Over Time and Across the U.S. States," SocArXiv jz5xp, Center for Open Science.
    5. Nicardo S. McInnis & Katherine Michelmore & Natasha Pilkauskas, 2023. "The Intergenerational Transmission of Poverty and Public Assistance: Evidence from the Earned Income Tax Credit," NBER Working Papers 31429, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    6. Katja Maria Kaufmann & Yasemin Özdemir & Han Ye, 2022. "Spillover Effects of Old-Age Pension across Generations: Family Labor Supply and Child Outcomes," CESifo Working Paper Series 9813, CESifo.
    7. David J. Deming, 2022. "Four Facts about Human Capital," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 36(3), pages 75-102, Summer.
    8. Amelia A. Hawkins & Christopher A. Hollrah & Sarah Miller & Laura R. Wherry & Gloria Aldana & Mitchell D. Wong, 2023. "The Long-Term Effects of Income for At-Risk Infants: Evidence from Supplemental Security Income," NBER Working Papers 31746, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    9. Miri Endeweld & Anat Herbst-Debby & Amit Kaplan, 2022. "Do the Privileged Always Win? Economic Consequences of Divorce by Income and Gender Groups," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 159(1), pages 77-100, January.
    10. Sherry Glied, 2022. "Presidential Address: Connecting the Dots: Turning Research Evidence into Evidence for Policymaking," Journal of Policy Analysis and Management, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 41(3), pages 676-682, June.
    11. Louis Kaplow, 2022. "Optimal Income Taxation," NBER Working Papers 30199, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    12. Manasi Deshpande & Rebecca Dizon-Ross, 2023. "The (Lack of) Anticipatory Effects of the Social Safety Net on Human Capital Investment," NBER Working Papers 31512, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    13. Achyuta Adhvaryu & N. Meltem Daysal & Snaebjorn Gunnsteinsson & Teresa Molina & Herdis Steingrimsdottir, 2023. "Child Health, Parental Well-Being, and the Social Safety Net," CESifo Working Paper Series 10418, CESifo.
    14. Salvatore Morelli & Brian Nolan & Juan C. Palomino & Philippe Van Kerm, 2022. "The Wealth (Disadvantage) of Single-Parent Households," The ANNALS of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, , vol. 702(1), pages 188-204, July.
    15. Auerbach, Alan & Gorodnichenko, Yuriy & Murphy, Daniel, 2022. "Demand Stimulus as Social Policy," IZA Discussion Papers 15568, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    16. Schanzenbach, Diane Whitmore, 2023. "Understanding SNAP: An overview of recent research," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 114(C).
    17. Ray Rees & Thor O. Thoresen & Trine E. Vattø, 2023. "Alternatives to Paying Child Benefit to the Rich: Means‐Testing or Higher Tax?," Australian Economic Review, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne Institute of Applied Economic and Social Research, vol. 56(3), pages 328-354, September.
    18. Brady, David & Bostic, Amie, 2015. "Paradoxes of Social Policy: Welfare Transfers, Relative Poverty, and Redistribution Preferences," EconStor Open Access Articles and Book Chapters, ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics, vol. 80(2), pages 268-298.
    19. Antonella D’Agostino & Caterina Giusti & Antoanneta Potsi, 2018. "Gender and Children’s Wellbeing: Four Mediterranean Countries in Perspective," Child Indicators Research, Springer;The International Society of Child Indicators (ISCI), vol. 11(5), pages 1649-1676, October.
    20. Gromadzki, Jan, 2023. "Labor Supply Effects of a Universal Cash Transfer," IZA Discussion Papers 16186, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:sae:anname:v:702:y:2022:i:1:p:236-251. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: SAGE Publications (email available below). General contact details of provider: .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.