Single-parent families as part in multi-generational extended families in Tuva

Abstract

Introduction. In the Republic of Tuva, there is an increase in the number of single–parent families with simple
and complex multi-generational composition. There is an increase in the number of single-parent families with nuclear
and complex multi-generational composition in the Republic of Tuva. The author has set a goal to investigate
single-parent families living in multigenerational families and to analyze kinship assistance to single mothers using
sociological methods and drafting recommendations for the regional concept of family policy.
Materials and methods. The article relies on a sociological research materials held using qualitative methods
aimed at studying the social practices of women who head single-parent families in Tuva. 33 single mothers were interviewed.
Results. More than a third of single parents with children in Tuva live in households with a complex structure.
Single-parent families are often recipients of parental and kinship care. In–depth interviews with single mothers have
shown that intra-family economic flows in extended families in Tuva are predominantly downward – from the grandparents
to subsequent generations, the grandparents provide both material and instrumental assistance to singleparent
families. The assistance of the grandparents at the expense of pensions and other sources partially compensates
for the missing component in the budget of a single-parent family, which the father of the children would have to
contribute. Such a redistribution of resources improves the financial situation of single-parent families to a certain
extent, but worsens the older generation’s life quality.
Discussions and conclusions. Intergenerational downward transfers are especially relevant in conditions of a
shortage of resources in a single-parent family due to several number of children, non-employment of single mothers, lack of property in the form of housing, upkeeping students, children with disabilities, whose treatment require additional
expenses. Low incomes, high real estate values and related housing deprivation lead to increasing the number of extended multi-generational families, which include single-parent family units. Both nuclear incomplete families
and those that are part of complex extended families receive the help of their grandparents.