Table 1:

Summary of Key Similarities and Differences between Intimate Relationships at Higher and Lower levels of SES

Dimension of Assessment	Couples with a Bachelor’s degree or higher	Couples with less than a Bachelor’s degree
Aspirations	Agree that “A happy healthy marriage is one of the most important things in life”; Idealize two-parent, two-income, egalitarian families
Expectations	Confident that ideals are within reach	Skeptical of prospects
Gender ratios	More marriageable men than women	Fewer marriageable men than women
1st meeting	More likely in select or private spaces	More likely in public spaces
Early development	Delayed sex and cohabitation	Rapid sex and cohabitation
Marriage rates	Highly likely to marry	Less likely to marry
Child-birth	Typically follows marriage	Typically precedes marriage
Similarity between mates	Likely to pair with someone from the same level of SES
Relationship maintenance	More warmth, less hostility, no benefit to withdrawal	Less warmth, more hostility, withdrawal can be effective
Trajectories of satisfaction	Higher satisfaction, more stable over time	Lower satisfaction, more turbulence over time
Divorce rates	Less likely to divorce	More likely to divorce
Reasons for divorce	More emotional: lack of communication, incompatibility, lack of love	More instrumental: physical abuse, substance abuse, failure to contribute
Seeking treatment	More likely to seek out and find couples’ therapy	Less access to interventions and assistance
After the relationship	Likely to remarry and recover financially	Less likely to remarry, financial consequences are lasting