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Mailman School
of Public Health
Columbia University
722 West 168th Street,
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New York, NY 10032
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African-american single mothers: Understanding their lives and families Bette J. Dickerson, Editor This volume emphasizes the strengths and resiliency of African-American single mothers and their families who make up over 55 percent of all black families with children under 18 in the U.S. It gathers research evidence to refute the stereotype that African-American single mothers are dysfunctional, and transmit a culture of poverty to their children. Economic inequality has led single-parent families to create extended networks of blood relations and friends who participate in a system of reciprocity and provide mutual aid based on trust, much of it grounded in positive African cultural values handed down through the generations. These values include respect for wisdom based on experience, high esteem for elders, the communal value of extended family and friendship ties, practical spiritual ethics, and a group survival psychology. These families, in fact, have the productive power and knowledge to make informed life decisions and to transmit strength to the next generation. The authors criticize researchers for ignoring how the extended or multigenerational family carries on household-related activities. They define these families as matrifocal (mothers, daughters, and children sharing resources or households), rather than matriarchal (females dominating males), and emphasize that the absence of fathers in families does not necessarily mean that supportive men are lacking. Specific chapters explore the relation of African heritage and the experience of slaves and free blacks to present African American female-headed families; the impact of African religions and value systems on black women's views of sex, single motherhood, and social behavior; the psychology of African American teenage mothers; and the portrayal of black single mothers by the mass media. Other topics include how the legal system and social policies favor the interests of white American males and have contributed to the rapid increase of single-mother families; the negative effects of economic inequality on children - such as more emotional and mental illness, substance abuse and criminal behavior; the positive outcomes on child development in single-mother families that have strong adaptive behavior; and the unique roles of grandmothers and relatives.
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Disclaimer Free To Grow is a national program supported by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation with direction and technical assistance provided by the Mailman School of Public Health of Columbia University. |