| Abstract: | This study aims to explore the characteristics of single parents (such as gender, education and age), their impacts on (un)employment and economic security, as well as the difficulties faced by single parents, their needs, and their ways of response. A survey and focus groups have been carried out as methods of data collection, with a sample selected from single parents residing with at least one child under 18 years of age in Taichung City in 2010 (before the merging of Taichung City and Taichung County). It is found in this study that most single parents experienced multiple disadvantages. As for single mothers, due to a lack of substitute carers, they are forced to pursue part-time and unstable employment. Those who in an unstable and/or part-time job are more likely to be a “working poor”, their responses to it, hence, are to seize as many jobs as possible, and to cut down their living standards.It is also found that 62.5 per cent of the single parent families are short of formal support, and 93.1 per cent of the single parents deem provision of extra services the government’s responsibility. As for those who have better “weak ties”, they are more likely to acquire necessary information, to secure stable employment opportunities, and to obtain emotional support and social participation. Altogether, it reduces the chance of being socially excluded. Both single fathers and mothers consider that there is injustice in society, while single mothers have better informal support than single fathers have. As the family formation becomes increasingly diverse, and the informal support for single fathers decrease over time, social welfare for single fathers’ families have been emphasized. However, since men are still stereotyped as the breadwinners, single fathers are more inclined to apply for the formal support on behalf of their children. |
