“Sometimes It Just Feels like Nobody Comes through”: Experiences of Informal Social Support and Social Services Among Low-Income Parents

Background & Purpose: A substantial number of US families live in poverty or do not have enough income to meet their needs.  These families may rely on support from social networks (e.g. family or friends) or formal social services (e.g. TANF, WIC) to help them get by.  While these supports and services may provide needed help for low-income parents, limited research suggests that these resources can also contribute to stress.  A more nuanced understanding of how social supports and social services positively and negatively impact low-income parents could help refine existing services or assist in the development of social network-based interventions.  This study examined the following: What are the ways in which social networks or social services provide support and stress to low-income parents?

Methods: In-depth, semi-structured interviews were conducted with parents of children aged 10 or younger in four cities in the greater San Francisco Bay Area.  Participants were selected via purposive sampling and were identified through study advertisements posted both online and in public places frequented by parents (e.g. libraries, community centers).  For this analysis, a sub-set of low-income parents (annual household income of less than $35,000; n= 19) was extracted from the full data set (N=60).  The sample was approximately balanced by gender (women 53% vs. men 47%) and racially/ethnically diverse (White 32%, Black 21%, Hispanic 21%, Asian or Pacific Islander 16%, and American Indian or Multi-racial 10%).  Almost half of the sample (47%) were married or living in a marriage-like relationship.  Study participants were asked to describe their social networks and use of social services, including both positive and negative experiences.  The interviews were transcribed verbatim and a thematic analysis was conducted using Dedoose 2.1 software. 

Results:  The availability of social support differed considerably between low-income parents who grew up in middle-class families and those who grew up in poverty.  While low-income parents with middle-class family and friend networks had more tangible support resources available to them (e.g. assistance with rent or bills), many reported receiving limited emotional support and feeling judged for lifestyle decisions.  Low-income parents with low-income family and friend networks described few available resources for tangible or emotional support, often reporting compounded stress from dealing with their own financial problems as well as those in their family network.  While social services that provided tangible assistance were described as “life savers” by some parents, services that provided more intangible benefits such as case management or job coaching were noted to “tell me things that I already know.” 

Conclusions & Implications: Inter-generational poverty limited positive experiences of social support for some low-income parents.  However, low-income parents with middle-class “life-lines” available to them also described significant strife with social networks.  Interventions designed to provide social support to low-income parents could focus on broadening available social networks to include mixed-income relationships, however they should note that these relationships can also induce stress.  Social services that marry tangible assistance with intangible assistance might be better able to engage low-income parents.