Data on Families with Low Incomes Across America Can Inform Two-Generation Approaches

Many families struggle to meet their basic needs, a challenge that may be exacerbated by increased costs of living, widening income inequality, and ongoing economic uncertainty. Upward economic mobility across generations remains limited; children who grow up in the United States today are much less likely than children born in the 1940s to earn more income than their parents. Research suggests that two-generation (2Gen) approaches can help interrupt the economic and social barriers to many families’ economic mobility and increased well-being and carry long-term benefits. This report provides a current data snapshot of some families in the United States who may be eligible for and benefit from 2Gen supports and services.