Marriage timing and economic status among low-income Americans

¶ … quality of marriage among the poor in America. Besides a collection of published reports on this matter, the article also presents new findings revealed by recent studies. Despite the fact that some people are economically disadvantaged, they still marry and have children; such marriages are seen as unstable. Marriages can be unstable because they are done at a young age, according to one of the recent findings (NHMRC, 2011). The Fein article also provides a report on how family, marriage, divorce and childbearing are correlated with economic well-being. Fein argues that;

Despite the economic challenges, people still marry leading to unstable marriages.

First births among couples in upper middle class are likely to come after marriage, while in the lower middle class they are likely to come before marriage.

3. The Latinos comprise the majority of the young couples who are disadvantaged, compared to the small number of African-Americans.

4. Economically disadvantaged couples have a low level of education and a higher unemployment rate, compared to higher socioeconomic status couples.

5. Quite a substantial proportion of married couples use various types of assistance programs.

6. The major race and ethnic extractions of low couples vary by age, education, physical location in the U.S., and whether they reside in a town or up-country (Fein, 2004).

Do you think the exhibit supports the argument advanced in the article text? Why or why not? Be specific

Exhibit 5 presents the evidence that the majority of the first births among couples in upper middle class are likely to come after marriage, while in the lower middle class they are likely to come before marriage. They become parents before marrying or getting married. Thirty three percent of the couples who married in the 1990s with a low level of education had already gotten a child outside marriage, as opposed to only 10% of couples with a high standard of education. This number is even higher among African migrants, with more than 51% becoming parents before getting married (Fein, 2004).

What questions does the exhibit raise?

Will those who have low incomes marry and remain in marriage? What are the reasons behind low-income people having children up to three years before marriage? What are the reasons behind the economically empowered people having their first child after three years after marriage?

Conclusion

This article presents the information on when people marry and divorce. It also gives an assessment of the population based on economic vulnerabilities of the married couples in the United States. This paper also discusses the time at which different economic classes become parents, where in upper-middle-class parenthood is barely three years after marriage while on the other hand, the low-class level married couples transitioning to parenthood before marriage, putting into consideration demographic and economic factors of quality marriage (Fein, 2004).