This is a descriptive study of the statistical association between the amounts of financial—emotional supports available and their impact on the degree of difficulty in the performance of the parental roles of a nonrandom sample of eighty-six Mexican-American female single parents from McAllen, Texas. The sample was divided into four socioeconomic status categories. A total of twenty-nine variables were correlated: twenty independent, financial-emotional and nine dependent parental performance variables. The twenty variables were defined in terms of socioeconomic resources: child-care availability and satisfaction, nature of personal/children problems, and frequency of interaction with significant others defined emotional supports. Parental role performances were defined in terms of having children with medical, learning or emotional problems, and the degree of difficulty in caring for sick children, spending time with them, yelling and screaming, use of corporal punishment and feeling overwhelmed by parental demands. Analyses indicated that these families functioned in a stable and viable manner, with little evidence of disintegration or "pathology." The parents had extensive social networks comprised of kin# coworkers, and friends, and they interacted with these support people on a regular basis, usually several times per week, but at the same time the parents rarely interacted with the ex-husbands or ex-in-laws, The majority of ex—husbands had never made any support payments and rarely saw their children. The single parents did not evidence unmanageable problems in caring for their children, or in asserting control and authority over them. Corporal punishment, yelling and screaming, and other discipline problems were minimal issues, and were not more severe or serious than before the divorce. The mothers were satisfied with the available child-care and the general growth of their children, but felt they continuously carried a tremendous burden, and all indications are that, even with sources of different kinds and levels of support. Finally, a number of recommendations were made for further research hypotheses, issues, and public policy formulations.

The current study investigated the experiences of unwed adolescent mothers in faith communities, the Roman Catholic Church in particular. The study was motivated by the fact that, despite the Christian sexual ethic, which prohibits sex outside wedlock, many young unmarried women in faith communities do become pregnant. The study thus sought to investigate the lived experiences of these young women, their psychological and social experiences of unwed motherhood in the church community. Factors contributing to teenage pregnancy, sources of social support and possible intervention mechanisms were also explored. A semi-structured interview schedule was developed, and thirteen (13) participants ranging in age from 18-22 years were interviewed individually and in focus groups. The results indicate that unwed teenage mothers in faith communities experience a range of psychological and social experiences, including frustration, feelings of depression, social exclusion and discrimination by fellow church congregants. Stigma theory and stigma consciousness were used to account for these experiences. Peer pressure and gendered power relations were cited among the causes of unwed teenage pregnancy, while payment of damages and re-admission to the community of believers following a confession were cited among the sources of social support. The study concludes that sex education and communication between parents and their teenage girls are essential in dealing with the problem of unwed teenage pregnancy. The study concludes with recommendations for practice and further research. / Thesis (M.A.) - University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2009.

Thesis (MEd)--Stellenbosch University, 2004. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: This study was undertaken to investigate the perspectives of a group of teenage mothers from a disadvantaged community, on their need for support and suggestions for a community support programme. This study forms part of a community support project in which the Department of Educational Psychology of the University of Stellenbosch is currently involved. The findings of this study will be applied to plan effective interventions for teenage mothers. I made use of a qualitative research design and approached the study from an interpretive paradigm to gain insight in and an understanding of the participants’ perspectives. The focus group interview was my primary method of research. The data generated by six focus group interviews were verified through individual interview data. I also used a biographical questionnaire to obtain background information from each participant. Furthermore, I made comprehensive notes on my personal reflections and observations about the research process, and this became part of the research data. Through the process of data analysis, seven themes were identified. These themes are: material support; financial support; contact between the father and his child(ren); knowledge, advice and information; emotional support; practical support and access to employment. The participants also made suggestions for a support programme. The findings of the study indicate that programmes aimed at job creation, the accessibility of the government grant and support groups in the community could lead to enhanced support for teenage mothers. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Hierdie studie is onderneem om 'n groep tienermoeders uit 'n benadeelde gemeenskap se perspektiewe oor ondersteuning te ondersoek, veral ten opsigte van hulle behoeftes aan ondersteuning en hulle voorstelle vir 'n gemeenskapsondersteuningsprogram. Die studie vorm deel van 'n gemeenskapsondersteuningsprojek waarby die Departement Opvoedkundige Sielkunde van die Universiteit Stellenbosch tans betrokke is. Die bevindinge van die studie sal aangewend word om effektiewe intervensies vir tienermoeders te beplan. Ten einde insig en begrip vir die deelnemers se perspektiewe te ontwikkel, het ek van 'n kwalitatiewe navorsingsontwerp gebruik gemaak en die studie vanuit 'n interpretivistiese paradigma benader. My primêre metode van ondersoek was ses fokusgroeponderhoude. Die data wat op hierdie manier gegenereer is, is deur middel van individuele onderhoude geverifieer. Ek het ook gebruik gemaak van 'n biografiese vraelys om agtergrondinligting oor elke deelnemer te verkry. Omdat ek binne ‘n kwalitatiewe navorsingsproses werk, was my persoonlike refleksies en waarnemings deel van die navorsingsproses. Deur middel van die proses van data-analise het sewe temas uit die data na vore gekom. Die volgende temas is geïdentifiseer: materiële ondersteuning; finansiële ondersteuning; kontak tussen die pa en sy kind(ers); kennis, raad en inligting; emosionele ondersteuning; praktiese hulp en toegang tot werk. Die deelnemers het ook voorstelle vir 'n ondersteuningsprogram gemaak. Die bevindinge van die studie dui daarop dat programme ten opsigte van werkskepping, die toeganklikheid van die staatstoelaag en ondersteuningsgroepe in die gemeenskap moontlik tot groter ondersteuning van tienermoeders sal bydra.

published_or_final_version / Social Work / Master / Master of Social Sciences

This dissertation is mainly based on the reading of three American novels to explore how female characters deal with their illegitimate pregnancies and how their solutions re-shape their futures and affect their inner growth. Chapter 1 discusses Dorinda Oakley's premarital pregnancy in Ellen Glasgow's Barren Ground and draws the circle of limits from Barbara Welter's "four cardinal virtues" (purity, submissiveness, domesticity, and piety) which connect to the analogous female roles (daughter, sister, wife, and mother). Dorinda's childless survival reconstructs a typical household from her domination and absence of maternity. Chapter 2 examines Ántonia Shimerda's struggles and endurance in My Ántonia by Willa Cather before and after Ántonia gives birth to a premarital daughter. Ántonia devotes herself to being a caring mother and to looking after a big family although her marriage is also friendship-centered. Chapter 3 adopts a different approach to analyze Charlotte Rittenmeyer's extramarital pregnancy in The Wild Palms by William Faulkner. As opposed to Dorinda and Ántonia who re-enter domesticity to survive, Charlotte runs out on her family and dies of a botched abortion. To help explain the aftermath of illicit pregnancies, I extend or shorten John Duvall's formula of female role mutations: "virgin>sexually active (called whore)>wife" to examine the riddles of female survival and demise. The overall argument suggests that one way or another, nature, society, and family are involved in illegitimately pregnant women's lives, and the more socially compliant a pregnant woman becomes after her transgression, the better chance she can survive with her baby.

Teenage pregnancy is a global problem and its prevalence in South Africa poses a serious concern to the government, health workers, parents, teachers, communities, and social workers in particular. As such, social work services are crucial in assisting pregnant teenagers to be self-reliant. Social workers employ three primary methods of social work practice when providing services to pregnant teenagers, namely casework, group work, and community work. This study sought to explore social work services for pregnant teenagers. A qualitative research method using an exploratory, descriptive, and contextual research design was employed to gather data from 12 social workers working in both rural and urban settings in the Capricorn District, Limpopo Province. A non-probability, purposive sampling method was used to select a sample. Data was collected by means of semi-structured interviews, consisting of a list of open-ended questions included in an interview guide. Data was also analysed following Tesch eight steps while Lincoln and Guba’s model was used for data verification. There are several stumbling blocks to effective service delivery, such as complex social problems experienced by pregnant teenagers, lack of formal and informal support, high caseloads, lack of resources, and little cooperation from other disciplines and agencies. Based on these findings, recommendations are made for education, practice, policy, and further research in an attempt to provide solutions to these challenges. / Social Work / M.A. (Social Science)

The study examines the occurrence of children born out of wedlock in four parishes belonging to the current Karlskrona municipality during the period 1875–1925. The parishes surveyed are Fridlevstad, Rödeby, Tving and Karlskrona city-parish. The period is divided into two parts where the first includes the years 1875–1890 and the second part includes the years 1910–1925. The proportion of children with unknown/known fathers, the mothers' occupations, the fathers' occupations, and the mothers' age are also used as survey variables. The proportion of known fathers increases significantly between the study periods, which could be explained by a reduced internal social control, while the study shows that the introduction of a child welfare officer in 1918 resulted in an increased proportion of known fathers. The mothers' occupational designations change between the periods, for example, the proportion of maids decreases while other occupations are added. In the city-parish, professions such as washerwoman and waitress are added during the second period. The proportion of women working in the industry also increases between the survey periods. The increased proportion of professions, especially in the city-parish, could be linked to the demographic transition. As more people settle in a city, new needs emerge and thus also new occupational categories. The age of the mothers decreases between the study periods. When it comes to class affiliation, it can be noted that most of the fathers and mothers belonged to the working class. However, the proportion of fathers belonging to the middle class was higher than the proportion of mothers belonging to the middle class.

The purpose of this study was to explore possible problems associated with pregnancy amongst student nurses in the Northern Province, and to determine whether their studies were adversely affected by their pregnancies. This study was designed as a quantitative, exploratory descriptive survey to look into the pregnancies of a specific group of students exploring their experiences in the classrooms and in the clinical areas. During 1998 data was collected by distributing questionnaires to ninety three pregnant . student nurses. Sixty-seven (71,0%) of student nurses fell pregnant because they lacked knowledge about contraceptives. Four-six (49,5%) of the respondents delayed seeking antenatal care, although they needed advice and support. Whilst fifty-eight (62,4%) of the respondents suffered from minor ailments such as tiredness, pre-eclampsia, early bleeding prior to three months pregnancy, and dizziness. Fifty-eight (62,4%) of the respondents encountered problems with their academic progress, as revealed by decreasing marks scored before, during, and after delivery. Student nurses would willingly avail themselves of guidance, advice and support during their pregnancies if they could access such services. / Advanced Nursing Science / M.A.(Nursing Science)

The purpose of this study was to explore possible problems associated with pregnancy amongst student nurses in the Northern Province, and to determine whether their studies were adversely affected by their pregnancies. This study was designed as a quantitative, exploratory descriptive survey to look into the pregnancies of a specific group of students exploring their experiences in the classrooms and in the clinical areas. During 1998 data was collected by distributing questionnaires to ninety three pregnant . student nurses. Sixty-seven (71,0%) of student nurses fell pregnant because they lacked knowledge about contraceptives. Four-six (49,5%) of the respondents delayed seeking antenatal care, although they needed advice and support. Whilst fifty-eight (62,4%) of the respondents suffered from minor ailments such as tiredness, pre-eclampsia, early bleeding prior to three months pregnancy, and dizziness. Fifty-eight (62,4%) of the respondents encountered problems with their academic progress, as revealed by decreasing marks scored before, during, and after delivery. Student nurses would willingly avail themselves of guidance, advice and support during their pregnancies if they could access such services. / Advanced Nursing Science / M.A.(Nursing Science)