Ambiguous Financial Responsibilities

Second Wives and Alimony Reform Activism in the United States

Bibliographic Data

ID2347653
AuthorsJocelyn Elise Crowley (0000-0001-9468-4412, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, New Brunswick, NJ, USA, corresponding author)
Year2017
Volume38
Issue17
Pages2474-2494
Publication date2017-12-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueJournal of Family Issues (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0192-513X • E-ISSN: 1552-5481
PublisherSAGE Publications Inc (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1177/0192513x16650232
OpenAlexW2402332979
LanguageEN
References cited53

Alimony, which involves financial transfers from mostly men to women after a divorce, has recently received more scrutiny in the United States by members of an emerging social movement. These activists are attempting to change alimony policy in ways that economically benefit them. One important part of this movement are second wives, who ally themselves with their new husbands and against first wives in the pursuit of alimony reform. This analysis examines how these second wives articulate their objections to alimony by introducing the concept of economic boundary ambiguity, meaning in this case, a state of human relationships where financial obligations between first and second wives are contested. In addition to creating several tangible stressors, economic boundary ambiguity can also have important consequences for women's own social identities as well as the collective identity and the success of the social movement overall

Alimony · Ambiguity · Economics · Political economy · Political science · Scrutiny · Sociology · Family Dynamics and Relationships · Gender Studies · Intergenerational Family Dynamics and Caregiving · Law · Psychology · Reproductive Health and Technologies