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The last two decades have seen a dramatic growth in the proportion
of families headed by women. Most of these families are poor and
include dependent children--causing the development of a large
underprivileged class across the western world. This book explores
the causes and implications of this development. Because the
increase in mother-headed families is an international trend, an
international perspective has been adopted. The discussion centers
on selected countries where certain trends are most visible. Among
the western nations particular attention is given to the United
States, Sweden, and the former U.S.S.R., because of their high
prevalence of mother-headed families; and trends in some countries
with a middling prevalence are also discussed. Japan is included,
because of its combination of advanced industrialization with a
non-western tradition and a low incidence of mother-headed
families. Accordingly, the book considers broad supranational
influences, and proposes some explanations that draw on material
from history, anthropology, sociology, psychology, women's studies,
economics, literature, and religious studies.
The authors present definitive information on the incidence of
mother-headed families across historical epochs and culture groups.
This includes an exploration of the conditions under which such
families have been many or few and have been treated well or poorly
by their communities. They also offer some theoretical explanations
for the increasing frequency of this family form and consider
whether these interpretations fit the facts that have been
gathered. Finally, there is a detailed discussion revealing what
these explanations may imply for the future--that is, whether the
number of mother-headed families is likely to increase, stabilize,
or decrease.
The last two decades have seen a dramatic growth in the proportion
of families headed by women. Most of these families are poor and
include dependent children--causing the development of a large
underprivileged class across the western world. This book explores
the causes and implications of this development. Because the
increase in mother-headed families is an international trend, an
international perspective has been adopted. The discussion centers
on selected countries where certain trends are most visible. Among
the western nations particular attention is given to the United
States, Sweden, and the former U.S.S.R., because of their high
prevalence of mother-headed families; and trends in some countries
with a middling prevalence are also discussed. Japan is included,
because of its combination of advanced industrialization with a
non-western tradition and a low incidence of mother-headed
families. Accordingly, the book considers broad supranational
influences, and proposes some explanations that draw on material
from history, anthropology, sociology, psychology, women's studies,
economics, literature, and religious studies. The authors present
definitive information on the incidence of mother-headed families
across historical epochs and culture groups. This includes an
exploration of the conditions under which such families have been
many or few and have been treated well or poorly by their
communities. They also offer some theoretical explanations for the
increasing frequency of this family form and consider whether these
interpretations fit the facts that have been gathered. Finally,
there is a detailed discussion revealing what these explanations
may imply for the future--that is, whether the number of
mother-headed families is likely to increase, stabilize, or
decrease.
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