Ebook: Samomama: Odinokie Materi v Rossii. A Comparison of Social Welfare Politics in Soviet and Post-Soviet Russia

This thesis traces the history of social welfare policy and prevailing attitudes towards single mothers throughout the duration of the Soviet regime and compares what changes and continuities are evident in modern day Russia. The fall of the Soviet Union brought the end of nearly seven decades of socialized childcare and heavily subsidized commodities and services. The impact of the transition was especially difficult on the most vulnerable and marginalized among the Russian population: single mothers. Since the transition two main trends have emerged. First, a return to pro-natal policies as means of confronting a demographic crisis as was first witnessed in the Soviet Union under Stalin and during the post-war climate; second, the displacement of highly feminist values with a desire for more domestic, feminine notions of motherhood and finally, the emergence of more single women opting for motherhood alone, a reflection of Russia's growing Westernization.