abstract: 'Although pregnancy and the first year of life are sensitive windows for

  child development, we know very little about the lived experiences of

  mothers living in poverty or near poverty during the perinatal period;

  specifically, how they perceive and use public resources to support

  themselves and their newborn. In this qualitative study, we explore how

  predominantly Black and Latinx mothers with infants living in or near

  poverty and engaged in public assistance manage to meet their family''s

  needs with available resources from safety net programs and social

  supports. We conducted 20 qualitative interviews with mothers living in

  (85\%) or near poverty in New York City (NYC). All participants (mean

  age = 24) had an 11-month-old infant at the time of the interview. Using

  thematic analysis, we identified five main themes reflecting how mothers

  experience and navigate living with very low incomes while engaging in

  public assistance programs: (1) experiencing cascading effects of

  hardships during pregnancy, (2) relying on food assistance and informal

  supports amid scarcity, (3) waiting for limited affordable housing:

  `life on hold'', (4) finding pathways towards stability after the baby''s

  birth, (5) making it work: efforts to look forward. Results describe how

  the current focus on ``work first{''''} of existing federal and state

  policies adds a layer of stress and burden on the lives of single

  mothers experiencing low incomes and entangled hardships during

  pregnancy and after birth. We document how mothers experience coverage

  gaps and implementation challenges navigating the patchwork of public

  assistance programs, yet how the support of flexible caseworkers

  accessing, using, and coordinating assistance has the potential to help

  mothers plan for longer-term goals.'
affiliation: 'Marti-Castaner, M (Corresponding Author), Univ Copenhagen, Dept Publ
  Hlth, Sect Hlth Serv Res, Copenhagen, Denmark.

  Marti-Castaner, Maria, Univ Copenhagen, Dept Publ Hlth, Sect Hlth Serv Res, Copenhagen,
  Denmark.

  Pavlenko, Tonya, New Sch Social Res, New York, NY 10011 USA.

  Engel, Ruby; Sanchez, Karen; Wimer, Christopher, Columbia Univ, Ctr Poverty \& Social
  Policy, New York, NY USA.

  Crawford, Allyson E., Evolutionforward, New York, NY USA.

  Brooks-Gunn, Jeanne, Columbia Univ, Teachers Coll, New York, NY 10027 USA.'
author: Marti-Castaner, Maria and Pavlenko, Tonya and Engel, Ruby and Sanchez, Karen
  and Crawford, Allyson E. and Brooks-Gunn, Jeanne and Wimer, Christopher
author-email: maria.castaner@sund.ku.dk
author_list:
- family: Marti-Castaner
  given: Maria
- family: Pavlenko
  given: Tonya
- family: Engel
  given: Ruby
- family: Sanchez
  given: Karen
- family: Crawford
  given: Allyson E.
- family: Brooks-Gunn
  given: Jeanne
- family: Wimer
  given: Christopher
da: '2023-09-28'
doi: 10.1007/s10826-022-02322-0
earlyaccessdate: MAY 2022
eissn: 1573-2843
files: []
issn: 1062-1024
journal: JOURNAL OF CHILD AND FAMILY STUDIES
keywords: 'Poverty; Maternal health; Qualitative research; Homelessness; Housing;

  Early childcare'
keywords-plus: 'LOW-INCOME; CHILD POVERTY; MENTAL-HEALTH; UNITED-STATES; WELFARE;
  CARE;

  TRENDS; HOMELESSNESS; EDUCATION; BARRIERS'
language: English
month: AUG
number: '8'
number-of-cited-references: '91'
orcid-numbers: Marti Castaner, Maria/0000-0001-7816-2059
pages: 2248-2265
papis_id: 320239589ee9f6473670f657f62d2c5d
ref: Marticastaner2022povertybirth
times-cited: '0'
title: 'Poverty after Birth: How Mothers Experience and Navigate US Safety Net Programs
  to Address Family Needs'
type: article
unique-id: WOS:000791640100002
usage-count-last-180-days: '1'
usage-count-since-2013: '3'
volume: '31'
web-of-science-categories: Family Studies; Psychology, Developmental; Psychiatry
year: '2022'