The effectiveness of premarriage education is limited by whether couples at high risk of future marital problems attend such education. In the current study, 374 newly married couples were assessed on a range of risk factors for future marital problems as well as whether they had attended marriage education. Couples with certain indices of relationship […]
This report, part of a series that presents population and housing data collected by Census 2000, presents data on the marital status of people aged 15 and over. It describes marital status distributions forthe United States, including regions, states, counties, and places with populations of 100,000 or more. Highlights include marital status patterns by age,sex, […]
The purpose of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of a premarital educational program, with the secondary goal of determining if the structure (conjoint versus group) and the participants’ gender influenced program effectiveness. Data were collected from 29 heterosexual couples. Couples were placed in one of three conditions: (1) premarital education in a group […]
State and local governments pay attention to households when making decisions about issues such as traffic patterns and school lunch programs. A broad spectrum of decision makers look to U.S. Census Bureau data to help them understand how the characteristics of families and living arrangements have changed over the decades. While many adults live alone, […]
This article outlines a solution-focused approach to premarital counseling. Solution-focused premarital counseling is a strength-based approach that focuses on a couple’s resources to develop a shared vision for the marriage. Background information about premarital counseling and solution-focused therapy provide the framework for the development of intervention strategies that are grounded in the solution-focused approach. Solution-oriented […]
In this brief, we use data from the first two waves of the National Survey of America’s Families (NSAF) to examine how living arrangements for families with children changed between 1997 and 1999. We find that the share of families composed of a single mother living independently declined; at the same time, the share of […]
The development of effective programs to prevent marital dysfunction has been a recent focus for marital researchers, but the effective dissemination of these programs to engaged couples has received relatively little attention. The purpose of this study is to determine which factors predict couples’ participation in premarital counseling. Predictive factors were derived from the health […]
This is a testimony to Congress by Maggie Gallagher given September 4, 2003. Ms. Gallagher reports that “”the current marriage crisis is intimately involved with how committed we are as a society to two key ideas: that children need mothers and fathers and that marriage is the main way that we create stable, loving mother-father […]
The need for empirical research that contributes to the prevention and arrest of marital distress is increasing. Factors identified through research as being influential in the stability of marriage include intimacy, positive behaviors, social support, good communication, and conflict management. Although a variety of marital enrichment programs that address these same factors do exist, this […]
This preliminary report provides an overview of the economic consequences of divorce for couples experiencing divorce in Utah. The economic impact on the divorcing individuals, the surrounding communities in which they live, and the state and federal governments were assessed. The data collected in Utah reveals that the federal government absorbs the most substantial costs, […]