the ethnographic approach and design

We drew on data from 14 exemplar cases from the 256 families who participated in the ethnographic component of the Three-City Study. This study was a longitudinal, multisite, multimethod project designed to examine the impact of welfare reform on the lives of low-income African American, Latino, Hispanic, and non-Hispanic White families and their young children (cf. Winston et al., 1999). The Three-City Study included an ethnography of 256 families and their children. Families were recruited into the ethnography between June 1999 and December 2000. Thirty-eight percent of the 256 mothers reported a history of familial incarceration: 15 were or had been incarcerated themselves, and 59 reported at least one of their children's fathers were or had been incarcerated. In 14 out of the 15 cases of maternal incarceration, men (previous/current boyfriends or husbands) that fathered at least one child had also been incarcerated. In keeping with our interest in including criminal justice involvement as an element of cumulative disadvantage characterizing tiffany bangle bracelet families (per Sharlin & Shamai, 2000), we purposely chose exemplar mothers from the subsample of cases characterized by parental incarceration.

Demographic characteristics of exemplar casesThe 14 participants chosen as exemplars for the present analysis were generally representative of the larger ethnography (see Winston et al., 1999, for demographic information), although the 14 women included in this tiffany jewellery tended to be somewhat more likely to be on Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) than the larger group of 256 families. Women included in the present analysis ranged from 21 to 43 years of age (M = 31). The ethnic breakdown of participants was as follows: African American in = 6), Hispanic (n=4), and White (n = 4). Twelve of the women were single (3 of the 12 identified as divorced or separated). Only one participant was married and one was engaged. Participants had an average of three children (range 1-7). Five of the 14 women were working at the time of the interview and half of the participants had at least a high school diploma or GED and 4 of these 7 had some education beyond high school. All 14 participants had some involvement with the criminal justice system via the father of one of their children or previous involvement themselves.Ethnographic Methodology

To gather and analyze ethnographic data on the mothers and their families a method of "structured discovery" was devised to systematize and to coordinate the efforts of the Three-City Study ethnography team. This involved an integrated and transparent process for collecting, handling, and analyzing the data (see Winston et al., 1999, for a full description of the ethnographic approach and design). Interviews with and observations of the respondents focused on earrings clearance topics (e.g., health, family economics, intimate relationships, neighborhood) but allowed flexibility to capture unexpected findings and relationships among variables. Ethnographers also engaged in participant observation with respondents, attending family functions and outings, being party to extended conversations, and accompanying mothers and their children to the welfare office, hospital, daycare, or workplace. Data sources for the present study included detailed ethnographer field notes and transcribed interviews.Exemplar case approach