marriage and cohabitation Flashcards
how many people who get married have lived together first?
2/3
marriage and cohabitation between people of the same gender have become…
increasingly common and accepted in both mainstream culture and law
many american marriages are what types of marriages?
remarriages
couples increasingly pair up by…
education level
who is marriage more common for?
people with college degrees
who is less likely to be poor?
married couples
what have weakened the ties of marriage?
the growth of individualism and the goals of individual self-expression and fulfillment
law increasingly treats people as _____ regardless of marriage status?
individuals
what trends have marriage rates followed since the 1960s?
falling dramatically
where are the most dramatic differences in marriage rates?
between racial-ethnic groups
what group has experienced the most rapid and pronounced decline?
African Americans
how many years could an average american living in 1960 expect to be married for? how about now
was 29 out of 37 years between ages 18 and 55, now 18
why have marriage rates fallen?
- young people postpone marriage because they idealize it more
- delay marriages because they want a better marriage
why have marriage rates fallen? (specifically among the poor and working class)
a sense of insecurity and uncertainty
increased earning power has boosted… and therefore…
women’s independence; they might not have or perceive an economic need for marriage
who is more likely to marry?
men and women with higher incomes due to the marriage market
for the economically insecure…
marriage may seem like a commitment that brings more burden than benefit
about the baby boom
- prolonged pike in birth rates from the mid-1940s through the early-1960s
- women marrying men about 3 years older
- posed a “marriage squeeze” about 25 years later
what was the result of the baby boom?
lower marriage rate for women
what caused the marriage squeeze for black women?
- in the 70s and 80s, industrial manufacturing jobs became scarcer
- men without college degrees have a hard time finding steady work
- incarceration of young black men
why do people still get married?
incentives: governments offer rights and benefits to married couples
social pressure
imitation
marriage market
the social space in which people search for potential marriage partners
what criteria must there be to define marriage as a market?
marriage must be voluntary and there must be competition for spouses
who advanced the marketplace concept?
economist Gary Becker
what percent of marriages in the US involve people from different major racial or ethnic groups?
1960 - 2%
2021 - 20% (still low in our diverse society)
of all married couples in 2022, how many were comprised of spouses with either both a bachelor’s or both without?
77%
what is the concept of marrying the same education level?
educational matching; it reflects the modern ideal of marriage as a companionship of equals, with compatible tastes, pursuing individual goals
how many same-sex married-couple households does the census bureau report?
700,000, or less than 1% of all married couples
since 1970, the amount of people who report their marriages as “very happy” is…
just over 60%
on average, who is happier in their marriage?
men
what race is most likely to say they have a happy marriage? who is least likely?
white people, black women
what likely increases the average happiness of married people?
supportive relationships and companionship
causality of are married people happy?
happier people may be more attractive as marriage partners, better at developing relationships, and better at keeping the marriage from breaking up
why do married people have more assets?
richer people are more likely to get married
selection effect
the problem that occurs when the cause being studied has already been determined by the outcome that is under investigation
what are the three sources of marriage benefits?
behavioral changes or responsibility
cooperation
social status
since the 1990s, welfare policy has tried to…
motivate poor women into marriages
also in 1990, what was happening with gay rights?
started demanding access to marriage as many states specifically banned it
what did congress pass in 1996?
defense of marriage act
what dd the Supreme Court do in 2013?
overturned the defense against marriage statute and ordered the federal government to recognize same-sex marriages legally performed in the states
what did the supreme court do in 2015?
passed obergefell v hodges, which ordered all states to allow same-sex marriage
cohabitation
living together as a sexual or romantic couple without being married
before marriage cohabitation
most common form; proving ground for the relationship or deliberate delay
cohabitation instead of marriage
temporary or permanent; against married, or excluded from traditional marriage, compromise between partners
cohabitation after marriage
divorced or widowed; cohabitation is increasingly common among older adults, and most of them have been divorced, older people may be interested in protecting their assets
