Social support and family assets: the perceptions of low-income lone-mother families about support from home visitation.

Background: Research on lone-mother families has commonly focussed on psychosocial risk factors and deficits rather than family assets (strengths and resiliency characteristics). The negative impacts of poverty and social isolation have been well documented. Home visitation programs provide formal support to overburdened families, yet little research has focussed on the meaning of support (e.g., formal and informal) from the perspective of families.