The absence of African American fathers in the home is seen as a primary factor of the insidious deterioration of African American families. These missing men are thought to be at the root of family disorganization and dysfunction. This ideology is often adopted without taking into account the rampant inequity, racial discrimination and legal difficulties […]
American attitudes toward marriage have undergone changes in recent years, with shifts toward an increased acceptance of nontraditional family forms. Data show that Americans are developing increasingly favorable attitudes toward nontraditional family structures, such as cohabitation. While most American adolescents express positive attitudes toward marriage and a desire to become married themselves, more and more […]
A fact sheet of the 5 elements of a healthy marriage is provided by the Thriving Couples, Thriving Kids organization at Syracuse University.
Currently in the United States, millions of adults suffer from alcohol use disorders. Alcohol use disorders include both alcohol abuse and alcohol dependence. Alcohol abuse is a problem pattern of drinking behavior that results in disruptions in work, school, and/or family life. This may include taking risks under the influence of alcohol that put the […]
The College of Human Services and Health Professions at Syracuse University provides a list of best practices for programs that provide low-income couple relationship education.
This tip sheet outlines ways newly-married couples can maintain healthy relationships by sharing the responsibility for decision making, open communication, and effective conflict resolution.
Many marriage and relationship education programs focus on developing effective communication and conflict resolution skills. While different processes or methods are used, the target skills remain consistent. These skills include assertive communication, I-messages, decision-making, arguing effectively, learning to avoid behaviors that hurt when arguing, and conflict resolution. As a result it is important for professionals […]
While the vast majority of contemporary Americans eventually marry, their age at marriage matters. Early marriage is associated with an increased risk of marital dissolution compared with marriages that occur to older individuals. However, only a minority of Americans now marries in their teens or early twenties. Researchers have also found that individuals who have […]
According to Waite and Gallagher (2000), benefits and protections accruing to marriage are largely due to “commitment”. The long-term nature of commitment allows couples to risk specialising or letting go of domestic roles. This is an efficient arrangement in terms of time, stress and money. Commitment motivates couples to look out for one another, providing […]
In order to learn whether couples can improve their odds of staying happily married, thereby reducing rates of family breakdown, we need to know three things. (1) We need to know what risk factors make marriages more likely to succeed or fail. For example, we might reasonably assume that couples who are better-off or those […]