Reinvigorating the debate: Questioning the assumptions about and models of “the family” in Canadian social assistance policy

SynopsisDrawing upon qualitative interviews with white, Aboriginal, and Métis parents on social assistance in the provinces of British Columbia, Alberta, and Saskatchewan, this article endeavors to reinvigorate discussion about the current conceptualization of “the family” implicit within social assistance policy across Canada. The current adult worker model of the family that is used to determine entitlement to social assistance appears to be gender and race neutral and equally offer opportunities for mothers' and fathers' labour market attachment. However, thematic analysis of interviews reveals that this model is contradicted by parents' poor financial resources and human capital, unequal access to “good” jobs, and inadequate caregiving support. In addition, this model neglects to account for parents' other socially valuable activities and relations. These findings form the basis to entertain a shift beyond the structural definition and/or conventional model of “the family” within social assistance policy, toward a process-based approach to families. Such an approach is sensitive to the intersections of gender and race/ethnicity, as well as diversity in familial relations, and can better account for and support low-income parents' existing and future citizenship, market, and family care relations.