Female single-parent family: a public policy issue

Abstract

The traditional family unit consisting of a father, mother, and children no longer prevails in society as it did decades ago, giving way to other family structures such as the single-parent family, where only one person takes on the parenting role. This article aims to analyze the conditions for implementing public policies aimed at preventing or mitigating the impact of gender inequality in single-parent families led by women. The question guiding the research is what public policies can be effective in mitigating discrimination and unequal treatment given to female single-parent families. The starting point was a theoretical review of Brazilian single-parent families, the causes and impacts of gender inequalities, and public policies. The methodological process includes the SWOT matrix analysis (an acronym in English for the words strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, threats) for diagnosing barriers to the implementation of suggested public policies. The hypothesis is that some social barriers make it difficult to implement public policies for single-parent families. The results show social barriers such as: lower income attainment; limited access to basic goods and services for members of single-parent families due to their low income; uncertain insertion into the job market; no proper family assistance; intensification of women’s double workload; school dropout; physical and psychological illness. Public policies are suggested based on the study.