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The association of family characteristics with housing conditions: A study of mother-only families
Abstract
A dramatic increase in the number and percentage of mother-only families in the United States has occurred in the last twenty years. One of the major problems faced by this population is the attainment of adequate housing. The purpose of this study was to develop models (for families with children in general, and for mother-only families) that identify family characteristics associated with each of four housing conditions that reflect United States housing norms. To ascertain additional insights on the impact of family type on housing conditions, models of associations between change in family type and change in housing conditions were also developed. The data for this were drawn from the Panel Study of Income Dynamics (PSID), a longitudinal survey conducted by the University of Michigan Survey Research Center. Descriptive statistics ad logistic regression, using the CATMOD procedure of SAS were used for the analyses. The major findings include: (1) the family characteristics that predict the housing conditions of mother-only families are similar to those that predict housing conditions for families with children, in general; (2) at the same levels of education, income, and employment as families in general; mother-only families are less likely to obtain housing conditions that meet societal norms; (3) different types of mother-only families tend to have different probabilities of living in housing conditions that meet societal norms; (4) of those mother-only families studied, those who were headed by widows tended to have a higher probability of living in housing that meets societal housing norms than other mother-only family types; (5) change in marital status from two parent to mother-only appears to have the greatest negative impact (except for space adequacy) on change in housing conditions. This research contributes to and expands upon the theoretical constructs that are used to study the housing of mother-only families. The implications for public policy, education and future research are discussed.
Subject Area
Home economics|Sociology|Welfare
Recommended Citation
Lodl, Kathleen Ann, "The association of family characteristics with housing conditions: A study of mother-only families" (1991). ETD collection for University of Nebraska-Lincoln. AAI9203354.
https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/dissertations/AAI9203354