Marital Messages

Abstract

It is an expected norm within our society for women to be married. This research asks Black women about the messages they received about marriage while they were growing up and the messages they in turn pass on to their children about marriage. The various responses denote either a culturalist representation of marriage (i.e., marriages are temporary) or a structuralist interpretation that realizes the messages one receives about marriage are affected by the social and economic realities of the women and their families. To ascertain the information on the messages received and transmitted by women, a survey questionnaire was administered to 286 Black women who lived in the city of Cincinnati, Ohio.