Marriage,Money, and African American Mothers’ Self‐Esteem

This study examined the effects of marital status and family income on the self‐esteem of 292 African American mothers. Counter to previous studies with European American mothers, family income moderated the effects of marital status. Those mothers with higher family income had higher self‐esteem, regardless of their marital status. For those with less family income, married mothers had much higher self‐esteem than unmarried mothers. Low‐income married mothers had the same levels of self‐esteem as high income mothers. It was concluded that financial resources can buffer the effects of being single, and being married can buffer the effects of being low income. Policy initiatives that focus on reducing the financial hardship on single mothers and increasing the marriage rate among lower income parents were also discussed.     

Marriage and the economic status of women with children

Marriage is positively correlated with income, and women with children are much less likely to be in poverty if they are married. Selection into marriage makes it difficult to assess whether these correlations represent a causal effect of marriage. One instrument for marriage proposed in past research is the gender of a woman’s first child. We find that women who have a boy first are about 0.33 percentage points more likely to be married at any point in time. This effect operates through both increasing the probability that unmarried mothers marry the child’s father and reducing the probability of divorce. We also find that women whose first child is a boy experience higher levels of family income and are less likely to receive welfare income, be below the poverty line, and receive food stamps. Estimates using child gender as an instrumental variable for marriage suggest that marriage plays a large causal role in improving the economic well-being of women with children and that these effects are largest among women at the lower end of the income distribution.     

Teen Mothers: Marriage,Cohabitation, and Educational Achievement

This study examines the proportions of ethnically diverse low-income teen mothers who are cohabitating and/or married to the father of their child(ren) at approximately 14, 24, and 36 months after birth of their child. In addition, the relationship between marital status and education among teen mothers is explored. At 36 months after giving birth, 60% of mothers were not living with or married to the fathers of their children. Hispanic mothers were the most likely, and African-American mothers the least likely, to be married to the father at each of the three time points. For Hispanic teen mothers, being married at 14 months was related to lower educational achievement.     

Family structure, stress, and psychological distress: a demonstration of the impact of differential exposure

In this article, we evaluate the relative power of differential exposure and differential vulnerability to stressors to account for variations in psychological distress between single and married mothers. The data for this assessment are derived from a longitudinal survey of 518 single mothers and 502 married mothers living in London, Ontario, Canada. Both cross-sectional and longitudinal analyses clearly reveal that the higher levels of psychological distress experienced by single mothers compared to married mothers are almost entirely related to their greater exposure to stress and strain rather than to any group differences in vulnerability to stressful experiences. Across a number of different dimensions of social stressors, single mothers are consistently more exposed to these stressors than married mothers are. Moreover, this differential exposure persists over time. In contrast, there is no evidence that single mothers are more vulnerable or reactive to stressors than are married mothers. We discuss these findings in terms of their implications for the sociology of mental health and for primary prevention.     

Single,Cohabitating, and Married Mothers’ Time With Children

Utilizing the 2003 and 2004 American Time Use Survey (ATUS), this study examines the relationship between family structure and maternal time with children among 4,309 married mothers and 1,821 single mothers with children less than 13 years of age. Single mothers spend less time with their children than married mothers, though the differences are not large. Marital status and living arrangement differences in time with children largely disappear or single mothers engage in more child care than married mothers after controls for socioeconomic status and other characteristics are introduced. Thus, less maternal time with children appears to be mainly attributable to the disadvantaged social structural location of single mothers rather than different proclivities toward mothering between married and single mothers.     

Married women's resource position and household food expenditures in Cebu,Philippines

This study analyzes how married women use their access to and control over economic resources to increase household spending on food. Using data from Cebu, Philippines, where child malnutrition is high, this study finds that the more income women earn and control, the more households spend on food. Women's control over their income is particularly important for increasing food expenditures in the poorest households. In richer households, women who earn little of their own income also use spouse income transfers to increase food expenditures. The findings from this study suggest that in a developing country setting, improving women's economic status so that they earn and control more household resources can increase household spending on goods that benefit children.     

Educational differences in parents’ time with children: Cross‐national variations

We analyze time diary data from 24,546 married mothers and married fathers in Canada, Germany, Italy, and Norway to determine whether the effect of education on child‐care time varies cross‐nationally. Our results indicate that more educated mothers spend more time with children than less educated mothers in each country, despite substantial cross‐national variation in levels of economic support and services for families. This suggests that better educated mothers may have different parental values and behaviors than less educated mothers. Among fathers, however, education has no effect on child‐care time in Norway, and only weak effects in Germany. This suggests that family policies that provide economic support to families may reduce time constraints on fathers, thus ameliorating educational effects.     

Changes in Wives' Income: Effects on Marital Happiness,Psychological Well‐Being,and the Risk of Divorce

We investigate the effects of increases in married women's actual income and in their proportion of total family income on marital happiness, psychological well‐being, and the likelihood of divorce. We use data from a sample of 1,047 married individuals (not couples) in medium‐duration marriages, drawn from a five‐wave panel survey begun in 1980 and continuing to 1997. Structural equation modeling is used to assess the impact of increases in married women's absolute and relative income from 1980 to 1988 on the marital happiness and well‐being of married men and women in 1988. Event history analysis is used to determine how these changes affect the risk of divorce between 1988 and 1997. We find that increases in married women's absolute and relative income significantly increase their marital happiness and well‐being. Increases in married women's absolute income generally have nonsignificant effects for married men. However, married men's well‐being is significantly lower when married women's proportional contributions to the total family income are increased. The likelihood of divorce is not significantly affected by increases in married women's income. Nevertheless, increases in married women's income may indirectly lower the risk of divorce by increasing women's marital happiness.     

On the relative rewards to immigration: a comparison of the relative labour market position of Indians in the USA,the UK and India

While most studies of the decision to immigrate focus on absolute income differences between countries, we argue that relative change in purchasing power or status, as captured by an individual’s ranking in the wage distribution, may also be another important determinant of the migration decision. Using data on Indian immigrants in the US and the UK matched to comparable data on individuals who remained in India, we show that the average Indian immigrant will experience a fall in their relative ranking in the wage distribution compared to the position similar individuals achieve by remaining in the origin country. The fall in relative rankings is larger for immigrants to the UK than to the US, and largest of all for those with intermediate skills.     

Younger Age at First Childbirth Predicts Mothers’ Lower Economic and Psychological Well-Being Later in Life

Age at first childbirth affects mothers’ economic and psychological well-being later in life. Using a gender and power framework, two studies examined the associations among age at first childbirth, employment status, perceived choice, and race/ethnicity as predictors of economic and psychological well-being in a sample of middle class, married mothers (Study 1) and a nationally representative sample of married mothers (Study 2). Results indicated younger age at first childbirth is associated with less choice; lower educational attainment; lower SES; greater household labor; greater perceived chore discrepancy; lower self-esteem; less life, work, and relationship satisfaction; but is unrelated to depression or work stress. There were differences by employment status and minimal differences by race/ethnicity. The findings suggest that negative economic and psychological outcomes later in life are related to having one’s first child at a younger age.     

Acceptance and Caregiving of Married and Divorced Custodial Mothers and Fathers

The study examined whether differences in gender and family status affect parental caregiving disposition and acceptance of children among parents of children in mid-childhood. The number of participants were 122 divorced-custodial fathers, 107 married fathers, 85 divorced-custodial mothers, and 82 married mothers (n?=?398). A comparison among four groups of parents revealed the following gender differences: mothers scored higher on anxious caregiving and parental acceptance than fathers, and lower on avoidant caregiving. Regression analysis indicated that the higher the caregiving avoidance or anxiety, the lower the parental acceptance. Family status moderated parental acceptance, as avoidant caregiving was associated with reduced parental acceptance among married parents, but not among divorced custodial parents. The finding that avoidant caregiving was not associated with reduced acceptance among divorced custodial parents implies that their parental acceptance behaviors toward their children are affected by their parental status as sole custodial parent, and the associated responsibilities, rather than by gender.     

A consumer theory with competitive markets for work in marriage

The theory presented here aims at explaining individual consumer behavior inside marriage and prior to marriage. It is a New Home Economics (NHE) model in the sense that it assumes the existence of household production. It is an intra-household bargaining model in the sense that it assumes that husbands and wives typically have different economic interests with respect to marriage, and they try to negotiate arrangements that suit them best. The more resources they have, the more they may obtain results that favor them rather than their spouse. It is a market theory similar to standard labor market theory. This theory throws light on gender differences in demand for commercial goods that have home-produced substitutes. This theory leads to an explanation why women are charged more for dry-cleaning. The theory can also explain differences in demand for different products. Predictions include that of a sex ratio effect on consumption. For example, it is predicted that in countries with more emigration of men than women, women will be expected to make higher contributions to newly weds’ costs of housing. It is also predicted that there will be compensating differentials in marriage. For instance, women married to considerably older men are expected to have relatively more control over the use the couple’s income than women married to men who are close to their own age. In contrast to bargaining theory, the insights presented here apply to both married individuals and to those who anticipate being married in the future.     

The short-term and decade-long effects of divorce on women's midlife health

We hypothesize that divorce immediately increases psychological distress and has long-term negative consequences for the physical health of divorced people. In addition, we hypothesize that divorce indirectly causes long-term increases in distress through stressful midlife events. The hypotheses are tested using data from 416 rural Iowa women who were interviewed repeatedly in the early 1990s when they were mothers of adolescent children; the women were interviewed again in 2001. The data support the hypotheses. In the years immediately after their divorce (1991-1994), divorced women reported significantly higher levels ofpsychological distress than married women but no differences in physical illness. A decade later (in 2001), the divorced women reported significantly higher levels of illness, even after controlling for age, remarriage, education, income, and prior health. Compared to their married counterparts, divorced women reported higher levels of stressful life events between 1994 and 2000, which led to higher levels of depressive symptoms in 2001.     

Sexual orientation and household financial decisions: evidence from couples in the United States

We analyze how sexual orientation is related to household financial decisions using 2000 US Census data, and find that lesbian couples pay higher annual mortgages relative to house value than do heterosexual or gay couples. We also estimate that cohabiting heterosexuals pay more than their married counterparts. We link this homosexual-specific differential to homeowners’ propensity to save. This differential reflects the gender composition of same-sex households, and their very low fertility, in addition to the precautionary motives increasing cohabiting couples’ propensity to save relative to married ones. Evidence from retirement and social security income of older couples exhibits the same pattern of differentials by sexual orientation and cohabiting status.     

The Association of Couples’ Relationship Status and Quality With Breastfeeding Initiation

Using data from the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing Survey (N= 3,567), we examine the links between relationship status, relationship quality, and race and ethnicity in breastfeeding initiation. We consider four relationship types: married, cohabiting, romantically involved but not cohabiting (termed visiting), and nonromantically involved mothers. We find that even after adjusting for a wide range of sociodemographic factors, married mothers were more likely to breastfeed than unmarried mothers and that racial and ethnic differences in breastfeeding do not result from differences in marriage rates. Among unwed mothers, paternal provision of money or other assistance during pregnancy decreases the likelihood of breastfeeding. We conclude that relationship status, above and beyond demographic characteristics, is an important correlate of breastfeeding.     

Marriage and the Motherhood Wage Penalty Among African Americans,Hispanics, and Whites

This study draws on data from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth (N = 5,929) to analyze the moderating effects of race and marriage on the motherhood wage penalty. Fixed‐effects models reveal that for Hispanic women, motherhood is not associated with a wage penalty. For African Americans, only married mothers with more than 2 children pay a wage penalty. For Whites, all married mothers pay a wage penalty, as do all never‐married mothers and divorced mothers with 1 or 2 children. These findings imply that racial differences in the motherhood wage penalty persist even for women with similar marital statuses, and they suggest that patterns of racial stratification shape women’s family experiences and labor market outcomes.     

Marriage or Carriage? Trends in Union Context and Birth Type by Education

Using data from 8,951 first‐time mothers in the National Survey of Family Growth, the authors analyzed trends in union contexts during the transition to motherhood by social class (proxied by maternal education). Conventional classifications of union contexts as married or cohabiting were extended by classifying births relative to union status at conception. The most conventional married birth type, in which the mother was married at conception and at birth, declined sharply, but only among low‐ and moderately educated women. Women with lower levels of education were instead more likely to have a birth in the context of a cohabiting union formed prior to conception. In 2005–2010, the adjusted probability of a low‐educated mother having a conventional married birth was 11.5%, versus 78.4% for highly educated mothers. The growing disparity in union type at first birth by social class may have implications for social and economic inequality.     

The role of economic and demographic factors in explaining time-use of single and married mothers

The number of households headed by single mothers has been increasing in recent years. Yet, little is known about how this growing segment of the population differs, if at all, from married mothers in their time allocation patterns. In the study reported here, a system of time allocation equations based on household production theory is estimated for both married and single mothers. The results indicate that married and single mothers make different decisions about how to allocate their time to household production, child care, leisure, and paid work. Specifically, single and married mothers responded differently to a change in their shadow wage rates, unearned income, paid child care, and the ages of the children in each of the estimated equations.A portion of this project was funded by the Wisconsin Agricultural Experiment Station. W. Keith Bryant, Jutta M. Joesch, Robert N. Mayer, Ken R. Smith and two anonymous reviewers provided helpful insights at several stages of this research. Sarah Stiefvater and Susan Bruns provided valuable research assistance on this project. All remaining errors are the responsibility of the authors.Direct all correspondence to Robin Douthitt, Family Resources and Consumer Science, 1300 Linden Drive, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI 53706. The authors are Associate Professors at the University of Wisconsin, University of Utah, and Utah State University, respectively.     

The Impact of Divorce

This study sought to determine if the often described differences in the child-rearingpractices of divorced and married mothers are related to the father's absence, or if they are largely related to the low income which so often occurs with divorce. Seventy-two mothers varying along the dimensions of father absence, income, number of children, and sex of the target child were interviewed. The resultssuggest that income is a key factor; child-rearing practices were more restrictive and demanding at the lower but not at the higher income levels. Additional effects were found when child-rearing practices were analyzed by sex of child and number of children.     

More Work for Mother: How Spouses, Cohabiting Partners and Relatives Affect the Hours Mothers Work

This paper investigates the determinants of work hours for mothers ofsmall children living in households with one other adult. We hypothesize that the presence and characteristics of the other adult affect a mother's work-related decision-making, and that the nature of the effect varies by the relationship to the otheradult—whether a spouse, an unmarried partner, or a relative. The results indicate that relationship type shapes how mothers' weekly hours of work respond to financial need, childcare pressures, and their own human capital. Married mothers appear to be more able to call on the earnings of their partners to reduce their work hours than mothers in other household situations. There was little evidence that female relatives freed mothers to work.