The changing face of the American middle-class
The current financial crisis affects everyone. No where, however, has the impact been more striking than on the middle-class.
“The gap between the ‘haves’ and the ‘have-nots’ is widening for families with children in the United States,” said Bruce Western, professor of sociology of the Multidisciplinary Program in Inequality and Social Policy at Harvard University. And primary author of a new study exploring income inequalities in the middle class during the past 30 years. “Inequality for these families has grown faster than the combined rates of inequality for all families and for men’s hourly wages.”
Results of the study, “Inequality Among American Families with children 1975-2005” indicate that several factors have contributed to the increasing stratification among the middle class. These factors include the growing income advantage of college graduates and rising number of single-parent households. The effects of these factors were somewhat offset by the the increasing rate of women’s employment and higher educational attainment among parents.
Current economic conditions may be slowing the rising tide of single parent families. A poll conducted by the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers (AAML) reveals that the number of divorces actually declines during periods of economic turbulence.
“The reason that the economy has such an enormous impact on divorces is that most people in the middle-income brackets are getting by on whatever income they have. They’re just getting by,” Bonnie Booden, a family law and divorce attorney in Phoenix, AZ told MarketWatch.
Circuit courts across the country are seeing notably fewer divorce and legal separation filings, MarketWatch reports. According to the AAML, more than one-third of members responding to the poll say they typically see a decrease in the number of divorce cases during economic downturns.
This is good news for families, children and the economy in general because the incomes varied the least among two-parent families according to the inequality study. Income inequality was greatest in single-parent families without a working mother. Unfortunately, the gap between high and low income families increased across all family groups during the 30-year period studied. The effect of the economic slowdown on the middle-class is important because it is a large and vibrant middle-class that purchases many of the products and services making up the bulk of the American economy. Without them, the economy continues to struggle and shrink.
“Our research suggests a broad increase in income insecurity that goes beyond low-skill workers and single parents and extends to families from every class,” Western states. “The polarization of family incomes among this generation has implications for the social and economic mobility of future generations and suggest the further erosion of the middle class in in years to come.”