The major themes of much recent research on child poverty, as well as policy,
have included measurement, child outcomes and the ways in which the ‘cycle of
poverty’ can be broken (Ermisch et al., 2001; Yaqub, 2002). The role of parents in
the relationship between poverty and outcomes for children is less well understood.
Parents living in poverty are much more likely than more affluent parents to be facing
a range of issues other than material deprivation which may affect their parenting.
These include low levels of education and few qualifications, lack of access to
jobs and services, isolation, mental and physical ill health and domestic violence.
These factors may act independently of each other but are also likely to interact,
so that disaggregating their effect on parenting – and on outcomes for children – is
extremely challenging. We also know relatively less about the different ways that
parents in poverty cope, as opposed to the negative aspects of parenting under
stress that place children at risk of poor outcomes. In particular, our understanding
is still limited as to whether and how far ‘good’ parenting mediates the effects of
poverty on children. Yet, in spite of the strong body of research linking poverty to poor
outcomes, there is equally good evidence to show that most parents living in poverty
are remarkably resilient and possess strong coping skills in the face of the adversity
in their lives. While most of the literature on parenting relates to child outcomes,
there is a growing recognition that parenting and parents themselves are worthy of
consideration in their own right (DfES, 2007).
There are two basic definitions of poverty in common use: ‘absolute’ poverty and ‘relative’ poverty. In addition there are a number of related concepts in use such as ‘hardship’, ‘social exclusion’ and ‘social capital’. These are not synonymous with poverty, but are important in discussing the relationship between parenting and poverty.
- Absolute poverty normally refers to a state in which income is insufficient to provide the basic needs required to sustain life (i.e. to feed and shelter children).
- Relative poverty defines income or resources in relation to the average. The official definition in the UK is 60 per cent of contemporary median equivalence household income (DWP, 2003a, 2003b). Relative poverty may also refer to the wider implications of living in poverty, such as the inability to participate or contribute to society on an equal basis because of a lack of sufficient income. According to Peter Townsend: Individuals, families and groups in the population can be said to be in poverty when they lack the resources to obtain the types of diet, participate in the activities and have the living conditions and amenities which are customary, or are at least widely encouraged or approved, in the societies to which they belong. (Townsend, 1979, p. 31)
Materially disadvantaged parents are a demographically different group from affluent
parents. Demographic studies (e.g. Hobcraft, 1998; Kemp et al., 2004) show that
poor families are more likely to:
- have non-traditional structures – lone parents and parents in reconstituted families
- live in households where no adult is in employment
- be headed by a teenage parent
- have a sick or disabled child
- have a child or children under five
- have a large number of children
The ‘Family Stress Model’ (Conger et al. 2000) proposes that the experience of
poverty is one of the more important factors that can put severe strains on
spousal relationships, bring about feelings of depression and increasing family
dysfunction.
According to the ‘Family Stress Model’ family contributes to emotional distress (e.g. depression) and family dysfunction. Family distress causes problems in the relationship between adults that are, in turn, linked to less effective parenting – a complex notion that involves insufficient surveillance, lack of control over the child’s behavior, lack of warmth and support, inconsistency, and displays of aggression or hostility by parents or older siblings. ( Zahid Shahab Ahmed, 2005)
According to the ‘Family Stress Model’ family contributes to emotional distress (e.g. depression) and family dysfunction. Family distress causes problems in the relationship between adults that are, in turn, linked to less effective parenting – a complex notion that involves insufficient surveillance, lack of control over the child’s behavior, lack of warmth and support, inconsistency, and displays of aggression or hostility by parents or older siblings. ( Zahid Shahab Ahmed, 2005)
