I Wanted a Fresh Start from Where I Was: Rural Low-Income Women's Experiences of Multiple Partnership Transitions

Abstract

Rates of union disruption between romantic partners--whether through divorce, separation, or dissolution of cohabitation--are substantially higher in the United States than other Western countries (Cherlin, 2008). It is estimated that approximately 25% of all American marriages end in divorce or separation within five years and more than half of cohabiting relationships are dissolved within five years (Cherlin, 2008). Yet, rates of re-partnering also are high, with more than half of the women who end their partnerships entering new relationships within four years (Andersson & Philipove, 2002). Partnership transition rates or instability, however, vary by social-class. Working or poor families are more likely to experience partnership transitions than their middle-class counterparts (Wells, 2005). Those with less education, particularly women, are the most vulnerable (Cherlin, 2010). Consequently, it is becoming increasingly common for low-income individuals to experience multiple partnership transitions during adulthood in the United States.To date, research examining partnership transition/instability has focused primarily on child outcomes or maternal parenting. In addition, the majority of studies conceptualize partnership instability as a discrete, singular event, such as divorce, separation, and dissolution of cohabitation, rather than a series of multiple transitions over time (Beck, Cooper, McLanahan, & Brooks-Gunn, 2010). Further, most previous studies have investigated urban, low-income populations, even though the greatest increase in cohabiting households with children in the last decade has occurred in rural areas (O'Hare, Manning, Porter, & Lyons, 2009). This study begins to fill in some of these knowledge gaps by focusing on rural, low-income mothers' experiences of and explanations for multiple partnership transitions.The higher rate of family instability among low-income households compared to other social classes has become a national concern as it is associated with a decrease in family finances, increase in welfare dependency, and higher likelihood of negative developmental outcomes for children. A substantial body of literature indicates that as children are exposed to multiple changes in family structure, they experience less positive developmental outcomes (Osborne & McLanahan, 2007; Sun & Yuanzhang, 2008). Negative outcomes include behavioral problems, delinquency, and teenage pregnancy (Cavanagh & Huston, 2006; Fomby & Cherlin, 2008; Wu & Thomson, 2001). Osborne and McLanahan (2007) reported that each partnership transition modestly increased the likelihood of a child exhibiting behavioral problems. Even one partnership transition, such as a separation, introduces multiple stressors into family life, which could include changes in family rules and routines, reassignment of household roles and responsibilities, challenges in meeting the emotional needs of family members, and readjustment of family finances. In the case of partnership dissolution, mothers and children tend to experience substantial declines in their financial and social resources (Bradbury & Katz, 2002). Additionally, mothers often report more psychological distress following, rather than preceding, partnership transitions (Crnic, Gaze, & Hoffman, 2005), and these transitions often lead to high levels of mental distress (Blekesaune, 2008).Despite the negative financial, emotional, and psychological outcomes that follow family transitions, recent evidence reveals that multiple partnership transitions over short periods of time are increasing (Burton, Cherlin, Winn, Estacion, & Holder-Taylor, 2009; Cherlin, 2010; Sassler, 2010). Burton et al. (2009) investigated the role of trust/distrust in low-income mothers' partnership formations and claimed that mothers who rapidly enter romantic relationships are less likely to collect information about their partners' trustworthiness than those who enter relationships gradually. …