Who Cares for Other People’s Children? Trends and Demographics of Othermothering from 2003 to 2022

• In Event: 20254 - Change and Continuity in Family and Kinship

Abstract

Despite significant scholarly attention to parents and children who receive informal childcare support from kith and kin, little work has examined those who provide this care or how their representation has shifted over time. To address this gap, we chart changes in the number of people who othermother, which we draw on Black feminist scholarship to define as unpaid individuals who care for children who are not their biological offspring or legal dependents, and identify their demographic characteristics. We analyze American Time Use Data to show that othermothers are disproportionately Hispanic, female, and less likely to be college-educated than those who do not care for children who are not their own. We also find that the number of people who othermother has declined by nearly forty percent from 2003 to 2022 across all demographic groups. Building on research that highlights a rise in intensive parenting and increased time spent with one’s own children, our findings reveal a decline in the number of Americans caring for children who are not their own.

Authors

• Austin C Lee, Boston University

• Pilar Gonalons-Pons, University of Pennsylvania