Poverty Level and Conflicts Over Money Within Families

Abstract

The Depression of the 1930s was followed a
half century later by the depression of the 1980s.
Voydanoff (1990) noted that the restructuring of
the American economy during the late 1980s was
accompanied by increasing le\.els of economic
distress. Aspects of economic distress, including
employment instability, emplo~ment uncertainty,
economic deprivation, and economic strain have
been found to be related to individual adjustment
and family relations. Thus. changes in the
economy during the 1980s ha1.e resulted in
changes in family life (Voydanoff, 1990). For
example, McVeigh and Shostak ( 1978) reported
that poverty is associated with a lack of decent
housing and an inadequate diet Other correlates
of poverty include low educational attainment and
a lack of proper medical care.