Effects of Class Background on Marriage Attitudes in Oberlin Students
Location
PANEL: A Sociological Look into Communities through Trans Experiences, Transit, and Attitudes Towards Marriage
CELA Moffett
Document Type
Poster - Open Access
Start Date
4-26-2024 10:00 AM
End Date
4-26-2024 11:00 AM
Abstract
The rise of feminism transformed the economic function of marriage in America. As upper-class women joined higher education and the workforce, marriages with two incomes doubled the financial advantage of partnerships for wealthier people. Meanwhile, as debt and cost of living rose for poorer Americans, and the burden of child/elder care became harder to outsource, financial deterrents to marriage mounted in lower socio-economic strata. Subsequently, practices around marriage have diverged on class lines. Everything from age at first marriage, divorce rates, unmarried cohabitation, etc, are dramatically and increasingly different for wealthier vs poorer people. Questions follow. Has the social concept of marriage diverged along class lines? How likely are people to marry within their class? What are the motivators and deterrents to marriage for people of different class backgrounds? I conducted a mixed methods study, based on these questions. Data from the 2010 General Sociological Survey was analyzed to assess rates of cross-class relationships. Additionally, I conducted two in depth interviews with Oberlin students concerning their class backgrounds and general attitudes towards marriage. Results indicate that individuals are highly likely to marry within their class, even in supposedly class-homogenizing mate selection arenas such as college campuses. Qualitative data suggests this is in part due to a desire for a partner with similar class-informed values. Emotional labor vs ease, and financial incentives vs deterrents were cited as two such values. Additionally similar spending habits, lifestyles, and class-informed communication patterns, are perceived to increase likelihood of cohesion, and decrease conflict.
Keywords:
Marriage attitudes, Socioeconomic status
Recommended Citation
Wicks, Celeste, "Effects of Class Background on Marriage Attitudes in Oberlin Students" (2024). Research Symposium. 21.
https://digitalcommons.oberlin.edu/researchsymp/2024/presentations/21
Major
Sociology
Project Mentor(s)
Christie Parris, Sociology
2024
Effects of Class Background on Marriage Attitudes in Oberlin Students
PANEL: A Sociological Look into Communities through Trans Experiences, Transit, and Attitudes Towards Marriage
CELA Moffett
The rise of feminism transformed the economic function of marriage in America. As upper-class women joined higher education and the workforce, marriages with two incomes doubled the financial advantage of partnerships for wealthier people. Meanwhile, as debt and cost of living rose for poorer Americans, and the burden of child/elder care became harder to outsource, financial deterrents to marriage mounted in lower socio-economic strata. Subsequently, practices around marriage have diverged on class lines. Everything from age at first marriage, divorce rates, unmarried cohabitation, etc, are dramatically and increasingly different for wealthier vs poorer people. Questions follow. Has the social concept of marriage diverged along class lines? How likely are people to marry within their class? What are the motivators and deterrents to marriage for people of different class backgrounds? I conducted a mixed methods study, based on these questions. Data from the 2010 General Sociological Survey was analyzed to assess rates of cross-class relationships. Additionally, I conducted two in depth interviews with Oberlin students concerning their class backgrounds and general attitudes towards marriage. Results indicate that individuals are highly likely to marry within their class, even in supposedly class-homogenizing mate selection arenas such as college campuses. Qualitative data suggests this is in part due to a desire for a partner with similar class-informed values. Emotional labor vs ease, and financial incentives vs deterrents were cited as two such values. Additionally similar spending habits, lifestyles, and class-informed communication patterns, are perceived to increase likelihood of cohesion, and decrease conflict.
