Single-Mothering as a Category of Concern in Times of Displacement: The Case of Internally Displaced Persons in Southern Philippines

This review provides a comprehensive and critical summary of the literature as to the development and maintenance of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) following civilian war trauma and torture. Prevalence rates are reviewed and predictors are discussed in terms of risk factors, protective factors, and factors that maintain PTSD. Most epidemiologically sound studies found relatively low rates of PTSD. There is good evidence of a dose-response relationship between cumulative war trauma and torture and development and maintenance of PTSD. There is also some evidence that female gender and older age are risk factors in development of PTSD. Some refugee variables may exacerbate symptoms of PTSD and contribute to their maintenance. Preparedness for torture, social and family support, and religious beliefs may all be protective against PTSD following war trauma and torture. Applicability of the concept of PTSD to non-western populations and areas for much needed further study are discussed.

Research studies and popular accounts of parenting document the joys and strains of raising children. Much of the literature comparing parents to those who do not have children indicates a happiness advantage for those without children, though recent studies unpack this general advantage to reveal differences by the dimension of well-being considered and important features in parents’ lives and parenting experiences. We use unique data from the 2010, 2012, and 2013 American Time Use Survey to understand emotions in mothering experiences and how these vary by key demographic factors: employment and partnership status. Assessing mothers’ emotions in a broad set of parenting activities while controlling for a rich set of person- and activity-level factors, we find that mothering experiences are generally associated with high levels of emotional well-being, though single parenthood is associated with shifts in the emotional valence. Single mothers report less happiness and more sadness, stress and fatigue in parenting than partnered mothers. This is concentrated among those single mothers who are not employed. Employed single mothers are happier and less sad and stressed when parenting than single mothers who are not employed. Contrary to common assumptions about maternal employment, we find overall few negative associations between employment and mothers’ feelings in time with children, with the exception that employed mothers report more fatigue in parenting than those who are not employed.