by Kwok Yung, Florence. / Includes questionaire in Chinese. / Thesis (M.Phil.)--Chinese University of Hong Kong, 1995. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 55-60 (2nd gp.)). / Chapter I. --- INTRODUCTION --- p.1 / Predictors of Parent and/or Child Adjustment in Single-parent Families --- p.3 / The Parental Loss Hypothesis --- p.3 / The Interparental Conflict Hypothesis --- p.4 / The Economic Hardship Hypothesis --- p.5 / The Life Stress Hypothesis --- p.6 / The Length of Separation Hypothesis --- p.6 / The Social Support Hypothesis --- p.6 / The Family Functioning Hypothesis --- p.8 / Purpose of the Study --- p.11 / Chapter II. --- METHODS --- p.13 / Subjects --- p.13 / Measures --- p.14 / Procedure --- p.20 / Statistical Analyses --- p.21 / Chapter III. --- RESULTS --- p.22 / Demographic Data --- p.22 / Descriptive Statistics of Predictors and Dependent Variables --- p.25 / Correlation between Predictors and Dependent Variables --- p.31 / Multiple Regression Analyses --- p.37 / Chapter IV. --- DISCUSSION --- p.44 / Parent and Child Adjustment --- p.44 / Financial Stress --- p.45 / Interparental Conflict and Parental Loss --- p.46 / Length of Separation and Socioeconomic Status --- p.47 / Accumulation and Co-occurrence of Stress --- p.48 / Family Functioning and Social Support --- p.51 / Limitations of this Study --- p.52 / Conclusion --- p.53 / REFERENCES --- p.55 / APPENDIX --- p.61

This thesis explored the resources available for care-giving in chronically poor female-headed households. It investigated the relationship between resources as enabling in the practice of care and the choices that women can consequently make in light of the multiple roles that they play as workers, as mothers and as significant people in female-headed households.

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The purpose of this research was to explore the life of single-mothers raising boys. The focus of this research was to provide information of life experiences for women who raised sons by themselves. The study also showed effects of divorce on single-mothers, pointed out experiences specific to raising boys, and looked at the issue of support. The study involved interviewing divorced single-mothers with standard, open-ended questions about raising boys. The questions discussed such issues as their relationships with their sons, and what types of support, if any, they had while they raised their sons. Participants included single-mothers who had not remarried, who were college graduates and whose language of communication was English. The interviews were then recorded and transcribed. The findings indicate that support to the mother does matter. The majority of the mothers interviewed had support for themselves and for their child. In most of the cases where support was offered, the primary figure was another female. In two-thirds of the cases, the other adult support figure was the grandmother. In one other case, it was the mother's daughter. Much of the literature states that outcomes on the lives of boys raised by single divorced mothers should be heavily impacted by problems in their lives (Amato & Keith, 1991). The 6 boys of the mothers interviewed here were not. While 4 of the mothers also had girls, certain issues were specific to raising boys. While 3 of the boys were young, 3 were over the age of 18 and their lives had not followed the prevailing research. This study indicated that for this particular group of single-mothers, support from others, determination and hard work on the part of the mothers, have made a difference in the lives of their sons. By providing support to the mother, support was made available to the son.

The aim of the study was to investigate the diet diversity, food access and coping strategies applied by single mothers with young children in the Northern Okavango region of Botswana. A qualitative and quantitative survey was chosen as the research design for this study. The study site was Gumare village in rural Ngamiland and the sample included only single female headed households. The questionnaires used were contextualized to reflect the culture, food patterns and specific foods commonly consumed in Botswana. Three questionnaires were used: 1. A socio- demographic questionnaire to document household size, age, marital status, income and water sources and the indigenous and wild foods that were gathered 2. The international standardized Household Dietary Diversity Score (HDDS) questionnaire to identify the variety of foods from fourteen food groups consumed by households over the previous 24 hours 3. The international standardized Coping Strategies Index (CSI) to determine the coping strategy behaviours of members of the household when faced with food shortages The socio demographic results of the study showed that female headed households had an average 7.4 members. They were seriously affected by poverty, as 58% of the households had registered under the Botswana Social Welfare programme as destitute. Therefore qualifies to be assisted through provision of food baskets and cash vouchers. The overall results obtained from the household dietary diversity questionnaire showed a diet diversity score of 2.0. This is an extremely low diet diversity value, which indicate a high level of vulnerability to food insecurity and inadequate food access. The foods which were mainly consumed by households were from the cereal food group, reflecting the global situation among the poor who rely on starch- based diets. The intake from dairy products (10%), meats (28%) and Vitamin A rich vegetables (16%) was limited. Given the limited food variety resulting in severe restriction to food access, coping strategies to address food shortages were employed. These included; relying on less preferred and less expensive food (100%), gathering wild food, hunting or harvesting immature crops (68%), limiting portion sizes (96%), reducing the number of meals eaten in the day (76%), depending on government food baskets (58%) and reducing overall food intake when the government food basket was not adequate (50%). It can be concluded that, given the restricted food access and a severely limited diversity in consumed food, extended government welfare assistance is crucial. The findings of this study could be used to guide the Botswana government when formulating new approaches and interventions to address food access and ultimately food security in households in this poverty- stricken area. / Agriculture, Animal Health & Human Ecology / M.A. (Human Ecology)

published_or_final_version / Social Work / Master / Master of Social Work

published_or_final_version / Sociology / Master / Master of Philosophy

Magister Artium (Development Studies) - MA (DVS) / Capabilities as espoused by Sen are the realizable opportunities that are open to an individual that enable her to be or do that which she finds reasonably valuable. This study assessed the work-care arrangement capabilities that single mothers in Gugulethu have at their disposal to undertake a juggling arrangement schedule that they find satisfying (fulfilling). In this study, single mothers were asked to affiliate themselves to one of three work-care arrangement groups namely, work-centered, child-centered and flexible. Then, the study empirically examined if there is a significant difference in respondents' work-care satisfaction within these three groups. It accomplished this by using the Kruskal-Wallis Test. The study then went on to identify the work-care arrangement capabilities of 7 single mothers who were undertaking juggling arrangement schedules that were not of their preference or choice. They were interviewed in this study to ascertain whether they had viable opportunities/ capabilities to undertake their preferred juggling arrangement schedule, which they believed would bring them much personal fulfilment/satisfaction.

Insufficient physical activity detracts from healthy living and has a disparate impact on African American women and their female children. The extensive body of prior research addressing preventable chronic disease and other consequences of insufficient physical activity includes limited information specific to African American single mothers. The purpose of this descriptive phenomenological study was to gain an understanding of African American single mothers' perceptions of physical activity. Specifically investigated were African American women's familial influences and potential effects of these influences on their children's health behaviors. The health belief model served as the theoretical framework for this study and provided a contextual lens to explore research questions to elicit African American single mothers' perceptions of physical activity. Six African American single mothers participated in semistructured interviews that produced data for this study. Use of Colaizzi's data analysis method revealed thematic single mother reports of healthy lifestyle, social support, resources/education, body/self-image, stress management, fear and embarrassment, motivation/inspiration, and injury/illness as factors affecting their engagement in physical activity. Future research opportunities include exploring multilevel interventions specific to African American single mothers and using common weight-related terminology. Study findings could benefit health educators, administrators, and providers. Positive social implications include improved physical activity and health outcomes for African American single mothers with ultimate decreased health care costs for the U.S. society.

ABSTRACT The single-mother figure shows up in myriad American film genres, and my thesis explores three of these genres, maternal melodrama, film noir, and horror. I argue there is a melodramatic mode that carries over from maternal melodrama to film noir and horror. This mode emphasizes emotional excess. In maternal melodrama, the emotional excess is pity. For film noir, the emotion is anxiety, and in horror, it is repulsion. Even though each genre has its own emotional excess, maternal melodrama still speaks to these other genres through its maternal sacrifice, non-heteronormative families and misreading of proper gender performances. For this reason, I intentionally begin with classic maternal melodrama, wherein conventional gender roles, heteronormative familial structures, and mother-daughter separation are standard features. In Stella Dallas (King Vidor, 1937), Stella misreads what "proper" femininity looks like. As a result, she believes she is "bad" for her daughter, Laurel, and makes the heart-wrenching decision to sacrifice Laurel to a traditional nuclear family. The other films I chose extend Stella Dallas' interest in gender roles, kinship structures, and mother-daughter separation but also subtly change the maternal melodrama's relationship to heart-wrenching sacrifice. In each of three chapters, I explore Michael Curtiz's film noir Mildred Pierce (1945), Douglas Sirk's melodrama Imitation of Life (1959) and William Friedkin's horror film The Exorcist (1973). After examining the standard features of maternal melodrama in Stella Dallas, I begin to explore them in other genres that focus on one of the three ideas more predominantly. These ideas are gender roles, kinship structures, mother-daughter separation. This does not mean that each film is limited to only one idea. All of the films address gender performance, familial structure, and mother-child separation, but I let each film take the lead on one of the three ideas. In Mildred Pierce, I explore gender performance. Mildred performs masculinity and femininity depending on whether she is in the public or private sphere. Imitation of Life takes the lead on alternative kinship. The film illustrates how two single mothers create a economically viable non-heteronormative interracial family. I conclude with The Exorcist and the possibility that the mother and child do not need to separate like Stella and Laurel. The Exorcist challenges what has long been considered a necessary process. This is the only film that successfully keeps mother and child united. I believe this project draws attention to the lack of analysis of single mothers in American film, but more importantly, it makes us rethink motherhood. The single mother privileges a certain approach to gender performance, familial structure, and mother-child separation that feminist theory and film studies have overlooked. This approach includes a masculine gender performance to perform as a father, disrupting the heteronormative familial structure to make it work for them, and mothers maintaining a relationship with their adolescent daughters.