Women-headed households and household welfare in Trans Nzoia County: the moderating role of access to social protection support

Abstract

This study examined the effect of socio-economic characteristics of women-headed households on household welfare in Trans Nzoia County, Kenya, with access to social protection support as a moderating variable. The study was guided by five objectives: to determine the effect of women-headed household income, education, employment status and household size on household welfare, and to examine whether access to social protection support moderates these relationships. The study was anchored on New Home Economics Theory, Social Protection Theory and Human Capital Theory. An explanatory research design was adopted, and primary data were collected using structured questionnaires from 370 women-headed households. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, reliability and validity tests, Pearson correlation analysis, multiple regression and Hayes PROCESS Model 1 moderation analysis. Reliability results showed acceptable internal consistency, with Cronbach alpha values ranging from 0.738 to 0.961. Validity was supported by KMO values between 0.928 and 0.973 and significant Bartlett tests. Correlation results showed that household welfare was positively and significantly associated with income, education, employment status and access to social protection support, while household size had a negative bivariate association with welfare. Regression results showed that income, education, employment status and household size jointly explained 49.9% of the variation in household welfare. Education had the strongest standardized effect, followed by household size, employment status and income. When social protection support was included, the explained variance increased to 60.0%. Moderation results showed that access to social protection support significantly strengthened the relationships between each socio-economic characteristic and household welfare. The study concludes that improving welfare among women-headed households requires integrated interventions that combine income support, education support, employment creation, household-size-sensitive programming and broader access to social protection.