Journal of Economic Literature
ISSN 0022-0515 (Print) | ISSN 2328-8175 (Online)
Of Markets and Marriages: A Multidisciplinary, Multi-book Review Essay of Recent Work on the Causes of US Poverty
Journal of Economic Literature
vol. 63,
no. 2, June 2025
(pp. 515–41)
Abstract
How is it that in perhaps the richest country in the history of the world such a large number of people struggle to acquire the basic necessities of life? Clearly, merely increasing the total quantity of goods and services produced in the market does not address this core problem. I review new work both inside and outside of economics that seeks to understand the persistence of poverty in the United States. With a particular focus on Desmond (2023) and Kearney (2023), I draw out the hypotheses in this work, suggest interesting avenues for future research, and discuss potential policy implications.Citation
Ananat, Elizabeth Oltmans. 2025. "Of Markets and Marriages: A Multidisciplinary, Multi-book Review Essay of Recent Work on the Causes of US Poverty." Journal of Economic Literature 63 (2): 515–41. DOI: 10.1257/jel.20241734Additional Materials
JEL Classification
- I26 Returns to Education
- I32 Measurement and Analysis of Poverty
- 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
- J24 Human Capital; Skills; Occupational Choice; Labor Productivity