Is Public Support a Key Causative Factor of Single Motherhood Decisions?

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Author fAMILY NAME. A1
1, First institution, Then city, Then country
email of first author@first institute
Keywords. Single mothers, minority groups, high school completion, single-motherhood, poverty
1 Introduction
Conservative Charles Murray, the author of Losing Ground, argued that single motherhood is a harmful societal phenomenon and that public support is a significant inducement for unwed women’s decision to have children (McLanahan 2001). When such statement is part of the public discourse in a society where conservatives hold key government and political decisions, it dissuades policy support for single mothers especially from minority groups. Murray’s opinion that public support is a significant inducement factor for single motherhood decisions provokes thoughts on factors that lead to single motherhood, especially when studies have consistently shown that single motherhood is more likely to lead to poverty (Lu, Walker, Richard, & Younis 2020) and low life satisfaction (Ollmann-Schult 2017). Contrary to Murray’s assertion, public support is not a key causative factor that leads to single motherhood. Indeed, lack of public support manifests itself through the stigmatization that single mothers face in the current societal settings (Lu, Walker, Richard, & Younis, 2020). The finding is also supported by the current paper outcomes where single mothers do not consider public support as motivational factor to the single motherhood decision.
Former President Clinton’s advisor William Galston asserted that avoiding poverty in the United States required youth to make three core decisions: finishing high school, marrying after 20 years, and marrying before getting a child. These decisions are far more likely to be effective and practical in the middle- and upper classes because women can seamlessly transition to stable relationships. On the other hand, in the underprivileged classes, romantic relationships less often end in stable relationships with a high probability of out-of-wedlock births (Ollmann-Schult 2017). Therefore, the research question is: is public support a key causative factor of single motherhood decisions?
The paper postulates that public support is an insignificant motivational factor for single-motherhood decisions in the United States among minority single mothers. Further, the paper intends to determine the prevalence of single mothers in minority groups who accomplished Galston’s three decisions. In this aspect, the paper hypothesizes that a single mother from an underprivileged group is less likely to have achieved the three decisions. Current paper research outcomes are vital because they will further inform the public on the need to support single mothers without stigmatizing them based on age, marital status, and educational progress, and debunk Murray’s assertions. Therefore, the study examines the causative factors of single-motherhood decisions from the point of view of single mothers in minority groups.
2 Methods
In examining the causative factors of single-motherhood decisions among women in minority groups, I conducted two separate hour and half-long interviews, approximating three hours. The interviews were carried out via the internet because of the current Covid-19 restriction measures. The two participants were randomly picked from a list of 10 single mothers within my social group. Of the ten single mothers, only seven were willing to be interviewed. The research criteria also restricted the participants to minority groups, further reducing the number to 4. I excluded the participants I had interacted most with because the currently held bias would potentially affect study outcomes. The final two mothers were chosen because they had finished high school and had attained 20 at the time of conception. However, the mothers were not married at the time they conceived.
Participation in the interview was entirely voluntary to extend knowledge and reduce stigmatization faced by single mothers. The participants consented to be audio-recording and allowed the recording to be transcribed on the condition that the original recording would be deleted after the transcription. However, the respondents requested anonymity for privacy-related purposes. In this regard, the participants will be referred to as Ann and and Jane1, respectively. Both participants were informed of their right to refuse to participate or answer questions they perceive sensitive or even withdraw from the study altogether. There was no stated penalty for their participation other than possible discomfort resulting from some of the interview questions.[s]
I interviewed Ann on April 28, 2021, at 9.00 PM. I interviewed at night because it was the only time that would fit her busy schedule. From the go, Ann gave me the impression that she leads a very busy life, a characteristic that can be attributed to single motherhood. The following day, I interviewed Jane at 10.00 AM. Both interviews were conducted via Skype with audio recording enabled. The study design involved a deductive thematic analysis process where I came to the data with two pre-conceived themes.
The first theme was titled Decision from Public Support (DPS), while the second theme was titled Decision from Personal Circumstances (DPC). Each of the two themes was created by merging two mini-themes. In the DPC, for instance, the first mini-theme was titled Personal Decision (P.D.), while the second mini-theme was title Moment Circumstances (MC). P.D. acknowledges that there are single mothers out of personal decisions. In this case, such mothers plan for conception in advance. Such mothers are more likely to have savings or plans to raise a child out of wedlock. On the other hand, MC acknowledges that some women are single mothers because of personal circumstances such as failed relationships. Often, these women do not have an opportunity to make plans for a prior baby conception. One of the key reasons why most women in minority groups cannot decide to be single mothers in poverty. Such women are also less likely to receive public support. The pre-conceived DPS theme assumes that women chose to become pregnant because of support from the public. In this regard, the public refers to close associates such as family members who may directly influence and the greater society.
Among the strengths of interviews as a data collection method is that allows for researchers to seek clarity on key issues that might otherwise be omitted when a different method like questionnaires is used. For instance, when Ann said that it was a personal decision to be a single mother, the interview allowed her to dwell on some of the factors that contributed to the decision. The clarity aspect of interviews is therefore a strength of the current paper. A key limitation to th...