Hispanic single parents: An investigation on the impact of gender, poverty, and general health on psychological distress

The purpose of this study was to investigate how poverty and general health impact psychological distress in Hispanic single parents. Additionally, this study sought to study whether gender played a role in psychological distress. The socio-demographic variables of citizenship and school attainment were also examined.

This study utilized a secondary source of data extracted from the California Health Interview Survey 2011-2012 dataset (CHIS, 2011-2012). The targeted population for this study was Hispanic male and female single parents.

The results of this study supported the existing literature that identified single parents as having high levels of poverty as well as high levels of psychological distress. This study, found that poverty and general health, had a significant impact on psychological distress amongst Hispanic male and female single parents. As hypothesized Hispanic female single parents had higher levels of psychological distress than Hispanic male single parents. Future implications for social work education and practice are explored.