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Introduction: Public Policy and Family Economics in US History

In: Family Economics and Public Policy, 1800s–Present

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  • Megan McDonald Way

    (Babson College)

Abstract

This chapter provides an introduction to the types of economic decisions that have challenged US families throughout our history and how public policy creates incentives for families to allocate their resources in ways that meet the country’s economic needs by affecting economic parameters such as prices, income constraints, property rights, and preferences. It looks closely at how three types of policies affected families’ resource allocation decisions: child labor laws and compulsory schooling, the Homestead Act of 1862, and married women’s property laws which changed the coverture laws the United States had adopted from the common law of England. By exploring how these policies affected family economic decision-making, it previews the economics and policies that will be presented in later chapters.

Suggested Citation

  • Megan McDonald Way, 2018. "Introduction: Public Policy and Family Economics in US History," Palgrave Studies in American Economic History, in: Family Economics and Public Policy, 1800s–Present, chapter 0, pages 1-21, Palgrave Macmillan.
    • Handle: RePEc:pal:psichp:978-1-137-43963-5_1
    DOI: 10.1057/978-1-137-43963-5_1
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