The Effects Of Marriage On America Essay — страница 2

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from a 1987-1988 National Survey of Families and Households, women with children were more likely to feel depression if they were cohabiting long term, but do not have plans to marry . Likewise, Dr. Susan Brown, a sociology professor at Bowling Green State University studied 404 married couples and 137 cohabitors. The cohabitors had a depression score of 17.2 compared to 13.3 for married people. Dr. Brown explains her findings by saying that cohabitors may be more depressed because their relationships tend to be less stable than those of married people (Woznicki, Cohabitors p1of1). A second study suggests that marriage has an effect on your blood pressure. Research led by Brian Baker of the Toronto Hospital evaluated effects of 5 marital characteristics on blood pressure. The

characteristics evaluated were: conversation, engaging in outside interests together, laughing together, having calm discussions, and working together on a project. The results revealed a consistent 6 mm. per mercury increase in men and women who showed low participation in these activities (Woznicki, Marriage p1of1). In other words, their blood pressure went up. The couples who are experiencing these negative effects of marriage must also be experiencing some instability in their marriage. Where does this instability come from? According to Mary Benin of Arizona State University, a drop in marital satisfaction occurs after the first baby. It s such an abrupt transition, going from an adult to a baby centered household, Benin said. Unfortunately, marriage satisfaction continues

to drop as the children get older. The lowest point of satisfaction occurs when the children are teenagers. (Elias p1of2). A second factor of problem marriages in America is due to age. Usually when a working couple marries at a young age, the husbands have low paying jobs. The wife s income is often taken away quickly as it is common for young working class wives to have children early (Collins and Coltrane 186-187). Consequently, these situations lead to economical hardship, which puts a strain on the marriage, sometimes ending in divorce. By the mid-twenties, working class couples have generally settled down. They infrequently go out of the house unlike middle and upper class couples who simply have the economic means to do so. Working class couples will seldom invite other

couples over; dinner parties are middle class not a working class, custom. Nor is there much male/female mixing. Husbands and wives tend to socialize with their own sex. The house is usually a women s place while the men tend to congregate outside the home. Women are continuously responsible for the up-keep of the house and care of the children. The women in these marriages felt a great deal of dissatisfaction. This is mainly due to their feelings of restriction. They complained their husbands never want to leave the house. In the cases when men didn t come home from work but in fact went out, women felt even worse. For this category of marriage, economics are not the problem, but the feeling of being trapped. (189-190) In conclusion, marriage has various effects on people. These

effects may be contingent on such factors as race, religion, age, and economical stability. Some individuals are impacted in a positive manner such as the promotion of multiculturalism that stems from interracial marriages. While some impacts are negative such as the hardships that working class people face when they marry at a young age. Generally speaking, Americans view marriage in a pessimistic light as indicated by the decline in teen confidence. However with further increase of reforms in American school systems, just as Florida schools are doing, the divorce rate may again drop while marriage rates will rise.