We employ newly developed methods to disentangle age, period and cohort effects on non-marital fertility ratios from 1972 through 2002 for black and white women ages 20-44 in the United States. We focus on three cohort factors: family structure, school enrollment and the sex ratio. For both blacks and whites, cohorts with less traditional family…

Many youth in the United States lack clear occupational aspirations. This uncertainty in achievement ambitions may benefit socio-economic attainment if it signifies "role exploration," characterized by career development, continued education and enduring partnerships. By contrast, uncertainty may diminish attainment if it instead leads…

In over 500,000 pregnancies in 1980, abortions were more likely among White unmarried adult women than among Black; among Black married women than among White. Likelihood of abortion increased monotonically with increasing education, but only for unmarried women. Results were similar for a teenage sample. Contains 32 references. (SV)

Examines the effects of family type on high school graduation using data from the 1979-85 waves of the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth. Results show that (1) not living with both parents at age 14 has negative consequences for children's high school graduation, and (2) disruptions (changes in family structure) between ages 14 and 17 also…

Collected data on 1,747 seventh and ninth graders to study why girls lag behind in science achievement, particularly during adolescence. Analyzed the effects of gender, year in school, mothers' employment, and parental separation. Found the female disadvantage is larger among those with separated parents, regardless of age. (KS)