Journal of Economic Perspectives
ISSN 0895-3309 (Print) | ISSN 1944-7965 (Online)
Family Change among Black Americans: What Do We Know?
Journal of Economic Perspectives
(pp. 65–84)
(Complimentary)
Abstract
The changes in family structures of black American households over the past three decades have been remarkable. In 1960, 33 percent of black children were not living with two parents. By 1988, the figure had risen to 61 percent. During the same period, the fraction of all black children born to an unmarried mother rose from 23 percent to over 60 percent. This paper examines the patterns of family change, briefly discusses their economic implications, and explores what is known about the economic reasons for those changes.Citation
Ellwood, David T., and Jonathan Crane. 1990. "Family Change among Black Americans: What Do We Know?" Journal of Economic Perspectives 4 (4): 65–84. DOI: 10.1257/jep.4.4.65JEL Classification
- D13 Household Production and Intrahousehold Allocation
- I38 Welfare, Well-Being, and Poverty: Government Programs; Provision and Effects of Welfare Programs
- J12 Marriage; Marital Dissolution; Family Structure; Domestic Abuse
- J13 Fertility; Family Planning; Child Care; Children; Youth
- J15 Economics of Minorities, Races, Indigenous Peoples, and Immigrants; Non-labor Discrimination
- J16 Economics of Gender; Non-labor Discrimination
- J31 Wage Level and Structure; Wage Differentials