Parenting Constraints and Supports of Young Low-Income Mothers in Rural United States

INTRODUCTIONBecoming a parent is a major life-changing event in which consistent daily stressors can decrease a parent's self-efficacy, confidence, and ability to perform the tasks associated with parenting (Coleman & Karraker, 1998). The majority of the studies about teenage parents focuses on health risks and negative outcomes, and fails to note the strengths of teenage mothers and their perceived parenting self-efficacy (Porter, 1990).Effective and responsive parenting, regardless of the age at which it begins, is more difficult to perform when the family lives in poverty. When a parent faces an overwhelming number of daily stressors on a regular basis, each task can be a daunting obstacle to overcome. Living in poverty itself can increase stress in a mother's life, as well as living in a rural community where access to supports may be limited. Certain factors, however, may intervene to ameliorate these negative influences, for example, social support and positive self-efficacy (Raikes & Thompson, 2005).The family ecological theory (Bronfenbrenner, 1979) can help to examine parenting by looking at the interactions among family members, friends, community members, educational institutions, employers, childcare providers, government agencies, and government policies (Glesner, 2006). Bronfenbrenner (1979) proposed four levels of interaction: Microsystem, mesosystem, exosystem, and macrosystem. The microsystem encompasses the interactions among family members; the mesosystem connects the family to other systems in the environment; the exosystem is external to the family but directly or indirectly affects family members; and the macrosystem encompasses the broad cultural and societal context. Although many studies have examined parenting self-efficacy, research focusing on parenting confidence of parents from various income levels and ages is limited. Using family ecology theory, this study examined the unique parenting challenges that face young low-income mothers living in rural United States (US) from an ecological systems perspective.REVIEW OF LITERATUREYoung MothersWhile the number of teen pregnancies in the US is declining (Hamilton & Ventura, 2012), adolescents are still having children and discovering the many challenges that come with childrearing. Previous literature has identified first-time adolescent mothers as "at risk" parents. This often refers to medical complications that these young women and their children are more likely to encounter. Roosa, Fitzgerald, and Carson (1982) pointed to several research studies showing that teen mothers were more likely to have difficulties with their pregnancy, labor, and delivery. Other studies on teenage mothers have indicated that their children were more prone to social, behavioral, medical and mental deficiencies (e.g., Baldwin & Cain, 1980; East & Felice, 1996; Weston, Soriano, & Qu, 2006). Negative indications for teenage mothers, however, could be factors associated with differences in socioeconomic factors rather than age (Roosa et al., 1982). Teenage mothers are more likely to be socioeconomically disadvantaged, high school drop-outs, and have more marital instability (Roosa et al., 1982; vonWindeguth & Urbano, 1989; Weston et al., 2006) than older mothers.The stigma of teenage childrearing is still evident in the US. Porter (1990) believed that some of the previous research based on this topic might have been biased and unconsciously portrayed teen mothers in a negative way. Teen mothers have been found to be less responsive to their infants' cues (Roosa et al., 1982; Schilmoeller & Baranowski, 1985; vonWindeguth & Urbano, 1989), provide a less stimulating and less nourishing environment (Schilmoeller & Baranowski, 1985; vonWindeguth & Urbano, 1989), and have less knowledge about child development (East & Felice, 1996). Porter (1990) and Roosa et al., (1982) noted the inconsistent methods and design flaws used within certain studies, as well as the failure of many authors to address the differences in race, culture, and socioeconomic status that could have affected the results. …