ABSTRACT
The quality and character of parenting result in part from the social context in which families operate. One important feature of this social context is public policy. This chapter examines several public policy issues that affect parenting. It does so within an ecological framework that arises from efforts to understand the interaction of human biological and psychological systems with human social and cultural systems. The issues discussed include policies regarding family planning, state responsibility for children, the role of neighborhoods in family support, economic conditions affecting families, and resiliency.
