Housing Conditions, Satisfaction, and Conventionality: An Analysis of the Housing of Female-Headed Households

Abstract

The analysis in this paper tests the differences between female-headed households and jointly headed households on conditions, preferences and norms for single-family home owner ship. Data are from a sample of 1186 households drawn from small cities in north-central Iowa. Female-headed households were more likely to live in a dwelling that was neither owner-occupied nor a single-family dwelling than were jointly headed households. Preferences for ownership and structure type differed between the two household types, but reported norms for tenure and structure type were similar. Although female-headed households were less likely to own single-family dwellings than jointly headed households, their housing conditions did not reduce their housing satisfaction. Female-headed households evidently have avoided dissatisfaction by developing unconventional housing preferences.

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Notes on contributors

Mary Winter

Mary Winter and Earl W. Morris are associate professor and professor in the Department of Family Environment at Iowa State University, Ames, Iowa.

Earl W. Morris

Mary Winter and Earl W. Morris are associate professor and professor in the Department of Family Environment at Iowa State University, Ames, Iowa.