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What Do Low-Income Single Mothers Say About Marriage?

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  • Kathryn Edin

Abstract

A primary goal of the landmark 1996 welfare reform legislation is to increase marriage rates among unskilled women with children. Current theories of marriage under-predict the extent of non-marriage, have not been adequately tested, or do not apply well to women with low-socioeconomic status. Furthermore, scholarly work on marriage attitudes among low-SES women suffers from a lack of up-to-date qualitative work. This study draws on qualitative interviews with 292 low-income single mothers in three U.S. cities. Inductive analysis reveals five primary motivations for non-marriage among low-income single mothers. Most mothers agree that potential marriage partners must earn significantly more than the minimum wage, but also emphasize the importance of stability of employment, source of earnings, and the effort men expend to find and keep their jobs. Mothers place equal or greater emphasis on non-monetary factors such how marriage may diminish or enhance status, how it may limit their control over household decisions, their distrust of men, and their fear of domestic violence. The author discusses these findings in relation to existing theories of marriage and in light of welfare reform.

Suggested Citation

  • Kathryn Edin, 1999. "What Do Low-Income Single Mothers Say About Marriage?," JCPR Working Papers 100, Northwestern University/University of Chicago Joint Center for Poverty Research.
    • Handle: RePEc:wop:jopovw:100
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Gary S. Becker, 1981. "A Treatise on the Family," NBER Books, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc, number beck81-1, March.
    2. Moffitt, Robert, 1990. "The effect of the U.S. welfare system on marital status," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 41(1), pages 101-124, February.
    3. Saul D. Hoffman & E. Michael Foster, 2000. "AFDC Benefits and Nonmarital Births to Young Women," Journal of Human Resources, University of Wisconsin Press, vol. 35(2), pages 376-391.
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    Cited by:

    1. Sheena McConnell & Robert Wood & Barbara Devaney & Sarah Avellar & M. Robin Dion & Heather H. Zaveri, 2006. "Building Strong Families: The Evaluation Design," Mathematica Policy Research Reports 7dbb5a6742c34edb9b4d9c3cc, Mathematica Policy Research.
    2. Thomas Deleire & Ariel Kalil, 2002. "Good things come in threes: Single-parent multigenerational family structure and adolescent adjustment," Demography, Springer;Population Association of America (PAA), vol. 39(2), pages 393-413, May.
    3. repec:mpr:mprres:6730 is not listed on IDEAS

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