Can cash payments to low-income families improve romantic relationships?
Financial strain can be a major stressor that impacts people’s wellbeing and quality of life, and it can also affect couple relationships. A new study from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign explores whether a monthly cash payment to low-income families can improve relationship functioning and stability.
“Prior research has shown that dealing with financial uncertainty negatively impacts couples’ ability to connect and communicate, which could put a strain on their relationship. One approach to support couples experiencing financial strain has been through relationship education programs that teach couples principles and skills to navigate conflict. A different approach is to directly target the financial stressor itself, which could have a positive spillover onto the relationship,” said lead author Jeremy Kanter, associate professor in the Department of Human Development and Family Studies, part of the College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences at Illinois.
The researchers analyzed data from Baby’s First Years, a longitudinal study designed to explore whether alleviating financial strain with cash payments can improve child health. The original study included about a thousand lower-income mothers in Louisiana, Nebraska, Minnesota, and New York, recruited shortly after the birth of a child. The mothers were randomly assigned to one of two groups, receiving either $333 or $20 every month as unconditional cash gifts.
Kanter and his colleagues focused on a subset of 443 mothers who were in a relationship with the baby’s father prior to receiving the cash assistance. The researchers examined the impact of receiving $333 per month on mothers’ relationship quality and relationship status after one and two years. They also explored the impact of cash payments on mothers’ life satisfaction, perceived stress, economic worries, and housing quality.
Comparing mothers in the two groups, the researchers found no overall effects. Regardless of whether the mothers received $333 or $20 per month, there were no differences in relationship quality or stability, nor any of the other measures.
The only positive effect was for mothers in Louisiana, where those who received $333 each month reported higher relationship quality in the second year compared to mothers in the lower cash condition.
“It is possible that the cash assistance went the furthest in Louisiana. Relative to the other states in the study, Louisiana had one of the lowest costs of living and lacked many other state-level financial support programs. The money just might have been more impactful for mothers in Louisiana,” Kanter said.
He points to several reasons for the overall lack of results.
“First of all, receiving $333 is useful, but if these mothers are navigating multiple financial stressors, such as unemployment, housing instability, and the high cost of childcare, it might not be enough to drastically change the context of their lives or their romantic relationships.”
Furthermore, the study occurred during the COVID-19 pandemic, which might have influenced the results. The pandemic brought a lot of upheaval, both financially and within family dynamics. These turbulent times may have diminished the effects of these unconditional cash transfers. At the same time, the U.S. federal government provided financial support such as cash payments and extended unemployment benefits during the pandemic. As a result, this unconditional cash assistance may have been less impactful within the broader context of these larger financial supports.
“It’s important not to overgeneralize our findings and suggest cash assistance never works. With these specific circumstances and this specific amount of funds, we didn't see the effect we were anticipating. But we did find some positive effects, and we think it's important to consider the context in which cash assistance programs are being implemented. It’s not a one-size-fits-all approach; we need a more comprehensive understanding about what amount would be most helpful for families.”
Kanter suggests it might help to combine cash assistance with tailored relationship education, thus reducing financial stress while also teaching couples strategies to manage stressors. Finally, he notes that results may also depend on couples’ relationship quality before they start receiving assistance.
“Some couples are doing quite well in their relationship despite experiencing financial instability, and they are able to navigate their stressors together. But for struggling couples, the cash payment could even have caused more conflict, such as who gets to decide how to spend the money. We're hoping to expand this research to see if there is a differential effect for couples depending on how they are doing in their relationship to begin with,” he said.
The paper, “Unconditional Cash Transfers and Romantic Relationship Outcomes: A Randomized Controlled Trial,” is published in the Journal of Family Psychology [DOI: 10.1037/fam0001377]. Authors include Jeremy B. Kanter, Justin A. Lavner, and Matthew A. Ogan.
Research in the College of ACES is made possible in part by Hatch funding from USDA’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture. The study was further supported by the Southeastern Conference Visiting Faculty Travel Grant Program.
The Baby’s First Years Project was supported by the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development of the National Institutes of Health under Award Numbers R01HD087384 and 2R01HD0. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the National Institutes of Health. The research was additionally supported by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families, Office of Planning, Research and Evaluation, and other organizations.