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Children’s Housing Environments: Welfare Families in Iowa

Iowa State University

Christine C. Cook

Iowa State University

Sue R. Crull

Iowa State University

Cynthia N. Fletcher

Iowa State University

This study uses qualitative data to examine how rural low-income women confront the housing needs of their young children in the midst of changes in public policy. The focus is on the strategies employed and the difficulties faced in the provision of safe, affordable and stable homes. The data are drawn from in-home interviews conducted every 6 months with 13 mothers who were welfare-dependent at the start of the research. The investigation depicts several dimensions of the circumstances of poor children that have not had much previous attention in the literature: serial housing inadequacy and chronic mobility. Several families with children with disabilities reported severe housing deficiencies. This research provides initial evidence of the important role of housing in promoting the goals of family stability and economic self-sufficiency as well as the need to improve health and developmental outcomes for children living in poverty.

Key Words: child welfare • housing • children’s environment • low-income families • housing policy • family policy

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