Ellis, Jane
(2023)
Parenting experiences in the context of poverty and austerity.
Doctor of Clinical Psychology thesis, University of Liverpool.
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Abstract
Original Research Project (Chapter 2) Abstract Background Austerity measures implemented since 2010 have been linked to increased poverty and inequalities. Experiencing poverty in early childhood puts this critical period for babies’ healthy social, emotional, and cognitive development in jeopardy. Parents’ capacity to provide sensitive, warm, and responsive care is compromised in environments in which their ability to meet basic needs is under threat. Concurrently, austerity measures have served to reduce the support available. While a growing body of evidence points to the damaging effects of austerity for family wellbeing, limited research has explored parents’ own experiences of austerity in the UK context. Methods Ten parents with babies participated in narrative interviews, which followed the Biographical Narrative Interpretative Method. This involved a single question followed by further prompts dependent on the stories participants told. Interviews were audio recorded, transcribed, and analysed. Results Themes, important events, and experiences within individual stories are shared diagrammatically, followed by the telling of a meta-narrative. Three sub-narratives were constructed: ‘Small government, big problems’; ‘It takes a village’; and ‘The personal is political’. Results indicated that parents and thus their babies are harmed by the financial precarity induced by austerity measures and a contraction of public services, and by austerity discourses. Conclusions Hearing the stories of this marginalised group has provided insight into their experiences and needs. Implications for clinicians and policymakers are discussed, advocating for relationally-informed, socially-contextualised approaches to clinical work, the delivery of services, and the development of policy.
| Item Type: | Thesis (Doctor of Clinical Psychology) |
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| Divisions: | Faculty of Health and Life Sciences Faculty of Health and Life Sciences > Institute of Population Health |
| Depositing User: | Symplectic Admin |
| Date Deposited: | 30 Nov 2023 10:44 |
| Last Modified: | 30 Nov 2023 10:44 |
| DOI: | 10.17638/03172999 |
| Supervisors: |
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| URI: | https://livrepository.liverpool.ac.uk/id/eprint/3172999 |
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