Tim Slack
Joachim Singelmann
Kayla Fontenot
Dudley Poston, Jr.
Rogelio Saenz
Carlos Siordia

http://www.demographic-research.org/volumes/vol20/15/

doi:10.4054/DemRes.2009.20.15

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Abstract
We provide a comparative analysis of county-level poverty in the two poorest regions of the United States - the Texas Borderland and the Lower Mississippi Delta - with a special focus on differences by family type. Our results reveal important regional variation in both the prevalence of poverty and the composition of the poor population across major family types. Using OLS regression models of family type-specific poverty we demonstrate three key findings: 1) There are no significant regional differences in poverty levels by family type between the Borderland and the Delta, net of important structural factors that characterize the regions; 2) with the exception of the employment rate, the structural factors associated with poverty among married couple and single female-headed families are quite different; and 3) paradoxically, areas in the Borderland with high in-migration are especially likely to suffer from high married-couple family poverty. Our results suggest the need for regionally targeted and demographically tailored anti-poverty policies.

Author's affiliation
Tim Slack
Louisiana State University, United States of America
Joachim Singelmann
Louisiana State University, United States of America
Kayla Fontenot
Louisiana State University, United States of America
Dudley Poston, Jr.
Texas A&M University, United States of America
Rogelio Saenz
Texas A&M University, United States of America
Carlos Siordia
Texas A&M University, United States of America

Keywords
family structure, Mississippi Delta, persistent poverty, poverty, regional poverty, Texas Borderland

Word count (Main text)
5499

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