Is Marriage Widening the Gap Between Haves and Have-Nots?

Writer Annie Murphy Paul contends that part of the growing gap between rich and poor in America is due to partners choosing one another because they are "matched sets" of having a good education, being well-paid, and sharing a tax bracket.

In her article, "The Real Marriage Penalty", published in the November 19, 2006 edition of The New York Times Sunday Magazine, she writes that it is no longer "commonplace for doctors to marry nurses and executives to marry secretaries."

She refers to this as "assortative mating, or choosing to have babies with a reassuringly similar partner."

Stephanie Coontz, who wrote Marriage, a History, says "There are fewer Cinderella marriages these days. Men are less interested in rescuing a woman from poverty. They want to find someone who will pull her weight."

Referring to "increased marital sorting", economists Raquel Fernandez and Richard Rogerson, believe that having more "high earners marrying high earners and low earners marrying low earners will significantly increase income inequality" in America.

While sociologist Christine Schwartz believes that assortative mating is "making marriage one more brick in the wall that separates Amerca's haves and have-nots", sociologist Julie Press wrote that women are looking for "cute butts and housework, that is, a man with an appealing physique and a willingness to wash dishes."

Let us know your thoughts by posting a comment. Aside from love, what criteria did you use to choose your spouse? Personally, at 19, I wasn't thinking about "criteria" but I was attracted to Bob's creativity and ambition. And he had great muscular arms -- still does!

Full Article:
     "The Real Marriage Penalty"

More Resources:
     Choosing Your Spouse
     Definition: Assortative Mating
     "Why Who Marries Whom Matters for Intergenerational Inequalilty"