Marriage, Poverty, and Public Policy. A Discussion Paper from the Council on Contemporary Families.

Autor/inn/en	Coontz, Stephanie; Folbre, Nancy
Titel	Marriage, Poverty, and Public Policy. A Discussion Paper from the Council on Contemporary Families.
Quelle	(2002), (19 Seiten) PDF als Volltext kostenfreie Datei Verfügbarkeit
Sprache	englisch
Dokumenttyp	gedruckt; online; Monographie
Schlagwörter	Employed Parents; Employed Women; Employment Patterns; Employment Problems; Family Financial Resources; Family Income; Family Problems; Family Programs; Family Size; Family (Sociological Unit); Family Structure; Government Role; Literature Reviews; Marital Instability; Marriage; Mothers; Needs Assessment; One Parent Family; Policy Formation; Position Papers; Poverty; Public Policy; Tax Credits; Trend Analysis; Welfare Recipients + Suchen Sie Ihr Suchwort? 'Female employment; Women''s employment'; Frauenbeschäftigung; Beschäftigungsstruktur; Beschäftigungssituation; Familieneinkommen; Familienkrise; Family program; Familienprogramm; Familiengröße; Familie; Familienkonstellation; Familiensystem; Familienkonflikt; Ehe; Mother; Mutter; Bedarfsermittlung; Single parent family; Ein-Eltern-Familie; Politische Betätigung; Positionspapier; Armut; Öffentliche Ordnung; Steuerermäßigung; Trendanalyse; Sozialhilfeempfänger; Sozialhilfeempfängerin
Abstract	Marriage offers important social and economic benefits. Well-designed public policies could play a constructive role in helping couples develop the skills needed to develop healthy, sustainable relationships with each other and their children. It does not follow, however, that marriage promotion should be a significant component of anti-poverty policy. The current pro-marriage agenda in anti-poverty policy is misguided for the following reasons: (1) nonmarriage is often a result of poverty and economic insecurity rather than the other way around; (2) the quality and stability of marriages matters; (3) two-parent families are not immune from the economic stresses that put children at risk; and (4) single parenthood does not inevitably lead to poverty. Given the pressing need for improvements in basic social safety net programs and the threat of rising unemployment, it is unconscionable to reallocate already-inadequate Temporary Assistance for Needy Families funds to policies designed to promote marriage or provide a "marriage bonus." Well-designed programs to help individuals develop and improve family relationships should not be targeted to the poor. Public policies should not penalize marriage; neither should they provide economic bonuses or financial incentives for individuals to marry, especially at the cost of lowering resources available to children living with single mothers. (Contains 60 endnotes.) (MN)
Erfasst von	ERIC (Education Resources Information Center), Washington, DC