Adapting Programs for Diverse Populations

Marriage education programs have typically been developed for engaged or married couples, using curricula designed with the assumption that core concepts were universally shared and accepted across racial, ethnic, cultural and demographic lines. But now with marriage education becoming more widespread and serving more people, programs are adapting to recognize the racial, ethnic, cultural and demographic differences. These differences affect the curricula or type of educational material the program uses and also the way in which programs deliver services. In this section we offer information on how both curricula and service delivery can be adapted for diverse populations. Please see below for additional resources.

http://www.acf.hhs.gov/healthymarriage/pdf/Tip_Sheets_for_Marriage.pdf
http://www.clasp.org/publications/couplesmarriage_brief_10.pdf
"An Asian Perspective on Relationship and Marriage Education" by Wei-Jen Huang Family Process 44 (2), 161–173. June 2005

Additional Resources

Adapting Healthy Marriage Programs for Disadvantaged and Culturally Diverse Populations: What are the issues? Center for Law and Social Policy. This brief describes the types of adaptation that are already underway in healthy marriage programs to address culturally diverse populations and provides examples.