Second marriages are known to be more fragile than first marriages. To better understand the factors that contribute to this fragility, this qualitative study compared stepfamilies that stayed together with those that separated by collecting interview data from one adult in each of the former (n = 31) and latter (n = 26) stepfamilies. Data were…

Predictors of two types of cohabitation dissolution, dissolution with a continued romantic relationship and without (i.e., breakup), were examined using data from mothers cohabiting at the time of a nonmarital birth in the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing Study (N = 1,624). Life tables indicated 64% of unions dissolved within 5 years; of…

Parenting confidence can be undermined by the presence of frequent or persistent health problems, particularly for people living in rural communities that have limited access to adequate health care. However, little is known about how minor health problems in the family impact parenting. The current study examined single and coresident mothers'…

Change in family structure over a 17-month period in a sample of 123 low-income urban and rural Wisconsin mothers who gave birth in 1974 is examined. Mother's age, education, and poverty status were characteristics most strongly related to household composition changes. (Author)

Asked 462 university students whether or not each of 16 scenarios represented "family" to ascertain their perceptions of "family." Found that all respondents considered traditional nuclear unit as family, and majority perceived marital status and parental status to be important features when defining family. Respondents tended to exclude…

Used data from a time-diary survey of 2-parent, 2-child families (n=214) and single mother, 2-child families (n=99) to examine differences in how adolescents use their productive time in the following domains: (1) housework; (2) school work; and (3) paid employment. Adolescents' age and mothers' education and employment influenced time allocation…