Children's Bureau Express

Strengthening Couples, Marriages in Low-Income Communities

Policy makers interested in crafting strategies designed to strengthen the institution of marriage will find suggestions in a new publication by Theodora Ooms of the Resource Center on Couples and Marriage Policy at the Center on Law and Social Policy (CLASP).

In "Strengthening Couples and Marriage in Low-Income Communities," Ooms addresses why it is important to focus on the state of marriage in low-income communities, what is known about the patterns of family formation and marriage among the poor and near-poor, and what kinds of strategies may help strengthen low-income couples' relationships and marriages.

Ooms suggests that any marriage-strengthening strategy to assist low-income populations be guided by the following principles:

Single individuals or single parents should not be stigmatized
Coercive and punitive policies should not be used to promote marriage
Low-income couples should be invited to help design and shape community-level initiatives
The focus of strategies should be on the quality of a marriage, not just preserving its stability
High-risk couples should be targeted when they are most ready and willing to get help
Parents, regardless of marital status, should have available information, education services and supports to strengthen their relationship
Substantial monetary incentives should not be offered, as it may be seen as the sole or principal reason to marry.

Ooms's paper was first published as Chapter 7 in Revitalizing the Institution of Marriage for the Twenty-First Century: An Agenda For Strengthening Marriage, edited by Alan J. Hawkins, Lynn D. Wardle, and David Orgon Coolidge (Praeger, 2002).

"Strengthening Couples and Marriage in Low-Income Communities," is available in PDF format at http://www.clasp.org/publications/strengthening_marriage_in_low-income.pdf. Revitalizing the Institution of Marriage for the 21st Century can be found on the Greenwood Publishing Group's website (http://www.greenwood.com).

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