Emergence of Single Mother Families: A Case from Urban India

The basic unit of society is family. There is a change in the structure and function of the family along with many other institutions of society. The factors like improvement in education, modern occupations, income disparities and spatial distance are affecting the solidarity of the family and its relationships. The social and economic changes have brought about a significant transformation in the traditional pattern of two-parent families in the past few decades. The single parent families are gradually increasing in urban India. Most often these families are headed by women with dependent children, forming single mother families. About thirty-three percent of household, worldwide, is estimated to be headed by women. These women are either divorced or separated, widow, unmarried or do not have a partner. The industrial development, urbanization, and socioeconomic changes are few important reasons for the making the single parent family as a viable unit in Indian context too. The increasing ability of women to earn income is one among few important factors in the increasing number of single mother families in the cities of India. The sociological research explored the changing lifestyles of families headed by women in India. The present paper will dwell into the changes in the family system in India with reference to the rise in single mother families.