Stressors and Coping Strategies Used by Single Mothers Living in Poverty

Abstract

The voices of the poor are ignored in policy debates and in social work research, practice, and the development of interventions. This article reviews the literature on stress and coping for single mothers in the context of poverty and uses narrative interviews to capture the lived experiences of 12 women who raised their children alone. The results showed that these single mothers’ stress and coping experiences tend to reflect the findings of research except that the low-income women in the study relieved stress and empowered themselves through volunteer work with other low-income individuals. The implications for social work education and practice are discussed.