Participating Couples
Thinking about participating?
Consider these:
Did You Know? What Research Shows
- Most unmarried couples having a child together love each other and hope to get married. (1)
- Children in married, two parent families tend to have better academic outcomes than children from other family structures. (2)
- Children living with their married, biological parents are less likely to experience child abuse and poverty. (3,4,5)
- Married partners tend to have better overall health and psychological well-being than those that are single or cohabitate, respectively. (6,7,8)
- Married men report higher wages than single men and have been found to be more productive and more likely to be promoted. (9)
- Married women have substantially more economic resources than single women. This leads to better mental and physical well-being. (10)
(1)McLanahan, S. et al. (2003). The Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing Study: Baseline National Report.
(2)Jeynes, W.H. (2000). The effects of several of the most common family structures on the academic achievement of eight graders. Marriage and Family Review, 30(1/2), 73-97.
(3)Daly, M. & Wilson, M. (1985). Child abuse and other risks of not living with both parents. Ethology and Sociobiology, 6, 197-210.
(4)Margolin, L. (1992). Child abuse by mothers¿ boyfriends: why the overrepresentation? Child Abuse and Neglect, 16, 541-551.
(5)Rank, M.R. & Hirschl, T.A. (1999). The economic risk of childhood in America: estimating the probability of poverty across the formative years. Journal of Marriage and the Family, 61(4), 1058.
(6)Ross, C.E., Mirowsky, J., & Goldsteen, K. (1990). The impact of the family on health: a decade in review. Journal of Marriage and the Family, 52, 1059-1078.
(7)Lamb, K.E., Lee, G.R., & DeMaris, A. (2003). Union formation and depression: Selection and relationship effects. Journal of Marriage and Family, 65, 953-962.
(8)Kim, H.K. & McKenry, P.C. (2002). The relationship between marriage and psychological well-being: a longitudinal analysis. Journal of Family Issues, 23, 885-911
(9)Korenman, S. & Neumark, D. (2001). Does marriage really make men more productive? The Journal of Human Resources, 26, 282-307.
(10)Hahn, B.A. (1993). Martial status and women's health: The effect of economic marital acquisitions. Journal of Marriage and the Family, 55, 495-504.