Feminist NGOs: Building Resilience in Low-income Single Moms

Abstract

This article discusses risk and protective factors impacting resilience through exploring how and why some mothers were able to achieve positive outcomes (economically, socially, as parents) in spite of adversity. By employing a qualitative research method and participatory action research, data were collected from 20 in-depth individual interviews, 3 focus groups with 18 participants and case profiles from the larger data set. The analysis counters the dominant individualism ideologies, which make the person solely responsible for their situation, and instead, argues that social structures can play important roles in building resilience and capacity. Practices of feminist NGOs reported in this study confirm this. The analysis has implications for changing practices in welfare bureaucracies and supporting feminist and similar NGOs.