POVERTY HISTORY, MARITAL HISTORY, AND QUALITY OF CHILDRENS HOME ENVIRONMENTS

Analyses of the consequences of poverty often treat poor children as a single, homogeneous group. We study relations among depth or timing o f poverty, mother's marital history, and quality of the home environme nt for children aged 6-9, using data from the National Longitudinal Su rvey of Youth. HOME scores increased markedly with income up to three times the poverty line, particularly for cognitive stimulation. The be nefits of having a married mother were larger among children who were not poor than among poor children, particularly for emotional support. Recent poverty was associated with deficits nearly as largely as long -term poverty. However, poverty early rn life had Ilo effect on HOME s cores at assessment.