Newborns require a lot of resources. And with the changes in income composition that come with a birth, many families face financial uncertainty. This has implications for children’s health and development, women’s economic security, and public program design. This research finds that households see significant and enduring declines in economic security before and after a birth, with especially large income drops for single mothers who live alone. Exisiting safety nets buffer these declines, but they do not eliminate them. More generous and timely income supports, as well as policies facilitating mothers’ employment, could shore families up during this critical period.

Dr. Stanczyk is a Postdoctoral Scholar at the Mack Center on Nonprofit & Public Sector Management in the Human Services at the UC Berkeley School of Social Welfare.

She holds a PhD from the University of Chicago School of Social Service Administration.

Her research interests include child and family policy; public benefit and income support programs; poverty and social inequality; low-wage work; parental leave and work-family policy, child welfare policy and practice; and women, children, and families’ economic security.

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