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Stannard S, Berrington A, Alwan NA. Educational Gradient of Multi-partner Fertility: First Estimates for the UK. EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF POPULATION = REVUE EUROPEENNE DE DEMOGRAPHIE 2024; 40:22. [PMID: 38922521 PMCID: PMC11208377 DOI: 10.1007/s10680-024-09708-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/03/2023] [Accepted: 06/03/2024] [Indexed: 06/27/2024]
Abstract
Recent demographic changes in Western countries have resulted in higher rates of partnership dissolution and serial partnering, and an increase in childbearing across multiple partnerships. This has given rise to more complex family dynamics including multi-partner fertility (MPF), defined as having biological children with two or more partners. Yet estimates of MPF in the UK have not previously been available. This paper describes an 'indirect approach' to estimate the prevalence of MPF in the UK, for men and women, given different assumptions. The paper additionally explores differences in MPF according to own and parental educational attainment. Amongst those born in Britain in 1970, 12-14% of men and 15-18% of women experienced MPF by age 42, depending on the assumptions made. For most of the cohort, MPF occurred with two different coresidential partners. We have established that MPF is a common family formation in the UK, but there are large educational disparities in MPF prevalence.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sebastian Stannard
- Department of Social Statistics and Demography, University of Southampton, Southampton, UK.
- ESRC Centre for Population Change, University of Southampton, Southampton, UK.
- School of Primary Care, Population Sciences and Medical Education, Faculty of Medicine, University of Southampton, Southampton, UK.
| | - Ann Berrington
- Department of Social Statistics and Demography, University of Southampton, Southampton, UK
- ESRC Centre for Population Change, University of Southampton, Southampton, UK
| | - Nisreen A Alwan
- School of Primary Care, Population Sciences and Medical Education, Faculty of Medicine, University of Southampton, Southampton, UK
- University Hospital Southampton, NHS Foundation Trust, Southampton, UK
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McErlean K. Cohabiting couple's economic organization and marriage patterns across social classes. JOURNAL OF MARRIAGE AND THE FAMILY 2024; 86:762-786. [PMID: 38682082 PMCID: PMC11052548 DOI: 10.1111/jomf.12947] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/24/2023] [Accepted: 10/06/2023] [Indexed: 05/01/2024]
Abstract
Objective Empirically examine whether different economic theories of marriage formation predict the transition from cohabitation to marriage differently across social classes. Background Less-educated individuals marry their cohabiting partners at lower rates than their college-educated peers, but the reasons for this are unknown. Few studies have examined the intersection of social class and couple-level economic resources to understand if the potentially gendered economic determinants of marriage vary according to a couple's social location. Method Couple-month data come from the 2014 Survey of Income and Program Participation, including 1,879 cohabiting couples, 478 of whom transition to marriage. Logistic regression is used to test whether the marriage bar, gender specialization, gendered institutions, or gender revolution framework best predicts the likelihood of marrying. Results Joint indicators of the marriage bar and the gendered economic organization of couples both predict marriage, but the specific gendered organization varies by the couple's level of education. Among couples where neither partner has a college degree, male-breadwinning couples are most likely to marry; dual-earning couples are most likely to marry among more-educated couples. Conclusion Although college-educated couples seem to have shifted to a more egalitarian model of marriage, as predicted by the gender revolution framework, the marriages of the less-educated are still characterized by traditional arrangements, in line with the idea that marriage is a gendered institution. By showing that different theories predict marriage depending on the couple's social position, these findings provide groundwork to explore why the less educated are increasingly less likely to marry their cohabiting partners.
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Cruz PW. The changing social gradient of marriage and cohabitation in seven Latin American countries. SOCIAL SCIENCE RESEARCH 2023; 113:102898. [PMID: 37230707 DOI: 10.1016/j.ssresearch.2023.102898] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/17/2022] [Revised: 01/26/2023] [Accepted: 04/19/2023] [Indexed: 05/27/2023]
Abstract
While research shows that cohabitation has increased significantly among highly educated individuals in Latin America, much less is known about how the relationship between educational attainment and first union formation has changed over time and across the region's countries. Accordingly, this paper describes the changes across cohorts in the type of first union (marriage or cohabitation) entered by women from seven Latin American countries. It also analyzes trends in the relationship between women's education and the type of first union within and between these countries. Using Demographic and Health Survey (DHS) data, life tables, discrete-time event history models, and predicted probabilities were estimated to analyze the changing determinants of first-union formation. The results pointed to an overall increase in first-union cohabitation over time, with some important differences across countries. The multivariate analysis suggested that women's education influences the type and sequencing of the first union, with socioeconomically disadvantaged women increasingly likely to transition to early unions and enter cohabitation rather than marriage.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pilar Wiegand Cruz
- Department of Sociology, University of Cambridge 16 Mill Lane, CB2 1SB, Cambridge, UK.
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Crosnoe R, Johnston CA, Cavanagh SE, Gershoff E. Family Formation History and the Psychological Well-Being of Women from Diverse Racial-Ethnic Groups. JOURNAL OF HEALTH AND SOCIAL BEHAVIOR 2023; 64:261-279. [PMID: 36960880 PMCID: PMC11181747 DOI: 10.1177/00221465231159387] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/30/2023]
Abstract
Studying disparities in psychological well-being across diverse groups of women can illuminate the racialized health risks of gendered family life. Integrating life course and demand-reward perspectives, this study applied sequencing techniques to the National Longitudinal Study of Youth: 1979 to reveal seven trajectories of partnership and parenthood through women's 20s and 30s, including several in which parenthood followed partnership at different ages and with varying numbers of children and others characterized by nonmarital fertility or eschewing such roles altogether. These sequences differentiated positive and negative dimensions of women's well-being in their 50s. Women who inhabited any family role had greater life satisfaction and fewer depressive symptoms, although these general patterns differed by race-ethnicity. Family roles were more closely related to well-being than ill-being for White women, parenthood had more pronounced importance across outcomes for Black women, and the coupling of partnership and parenthood generally mattered more for Latinas.
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Cha H, Weitzman A. What Explains Socioeconomic Disparities in Early Pregnancy Rates? SOCIAL FORCES; A SCIENTIFIC MEDIUM OF SOCIAL STUDY AND INTERPRETATION 2023; 101:1803-1833. [PMID: 37082329 PMCID: PMC10106925 DOI: 10.1093/sf/soac102] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/30/2020] [Revised: 08/01/2022] [Indexed: 05/03/2023]
Abstract
In this study, we integrate diverse structural, social psychological, and relational perspectives to develop and test a comprehensive framework of the processes that make early pregnancy a socially stratified phenomenon. Drawing on rich panel data collected among a sample of 940 18- to 20-year-old women from a county in Michigan, we estimate nested hazard models and formal mediation analyses to simultaneously elucidate the extent to which different mechanisms explain disparities in early pregnancy rates across maternal education levels-a key indicator of socioeconomic status. Together, our distal mechanisms explain 53 and 31 percent of the difference in pregnancy rates between young women whose mothers graduated college and young women whose mothers graduated and did not graduate high school, respectively. Reproductive desires, norms, and attitudes, relationship contexts, and educational opportunities and environment each link maternal education to young women's odds of pregnancy. Self-efficacy, however, plays only a modest role; while contraceptive affordability and knowledge are not significant pathways. These findings bring into focus the most prominent intervening mechanisms through which socioeconomic circumstances shape young women's likelihood of becoming pregnant during the transition to adulthood.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hyungmin Cha
- Department of Sociology and Population Research Center, The University of Texas at Austin, USA
| | - Abigail Weitzman
- Department of Sociology and Population Research Center, The University of Texas at Austin, USA
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Stritzel H, Crosnoe R. Unpacking the linkages between single parent households and early adolescent adjustment. SOCIAL SCIENCE RESEARCH 2023; 110:102841. [PMID: 36796997 PMCID: PMC9936081 DOI: 10.1016/j.ssresearch.2022.102841] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/31/2022] [Revised: 11/16/2022] [Accepted: 12/02/2022] [Indexed: 06/18/2023]
Abstract
Living with an unmarried mother is consistently associated with adjustment issues in adolescence, but these associations can vary by both time and place. Following life course theory, this study applied inverse probability of treatment weighting techniques to data from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth (1979) Children and Young Adults study (n = 5,597) to estimate various treatment effects of family structures through childhood and early adolescence on internalizing and externalizing dimensions of adjustment at age 14. Young people who lived with an unmarried (single or cohabiting) mother during early childhood and adolescence were more likely to drink and reported more depressive symptoms by age 14 than those with a married mother, with particularly strong associations between living with an unmarried mother during early adolescence and drinking. These associations, however, varied according to sociodemographic selection into family structures. They were strongest for youth who more closely resembled the average adolescent living with a married mother.
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Stannard S, Berrington A, Alwan NA. Exploring the associations between number of children, multi-partner fertility and risk of obesity at midlife: Findings from the 1970 British Cohort Study (BCS70). PLoS One 2023; 18:e0282795. [PMID: 37053250 PMCID: PMC10101483 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0282795] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/02/2022] [Accepted: 02/22/2023] [Indexed: 04/14/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Early parenthood, high parity, and partnership separation are associated with obesity. However, the emergence of non-marital partnerships, serial partnering and childbearing across unions, means that it is important to consider their association to obesity. This paper examined the associations between number of biological children and multi-partner fertility (MPF)-defined as having biological children with more than one partner, with obesity at midlife. METHOD The sample consisted of 2940 fathers and 3369 mothers in the 1970 British Cohort Study. The outcome was obesity (BMI 30 or over) at age 46. Fertility and partnership histories ascertained the number of live biological children and MPF status by age 42. The associations were tested using logistic regression adjusting for confounders at birth, age 10 and age 16. Adult factors recorded at age 42 including age at first birth, smoking status, alcohol dependency, educational attainment and housing tenure were considered as mediators. RESULTS For fathers, obesity odds did not differ according to number of children or MPF. In unadjusted models, mothers with one child (OR 1.24 95%CI 1.01-1.51), mothers who had two children with two partners (OR 1.45 95%CI 1.05-1.99), and mothers who had three or more children with two or more partners (OR 1.51 95%CI 1.18-1.93) had higher odds of obesity. In adjusted models, there remained an association between mothers with one child and odds of obesity (OR 1.30 95%CI 1.05-1.60). All other associations were attenuated when confounders were included. CONCLUSIONS Mothers who had children with multiple partners had higher odds of obesity. However this association was completely attenuated when parental and child confounders were accounted for; suggesting that this association may be explained by confounding. Mothers who had one child only may be at increased odds of obesity, however this could be due to multiple factors including age at first birth.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sebastian Stannard
- Department of Social Statistics and Demography, University of Southampton, Southampton, United Kingdom
- ESRC Centre for Population Change, University of Southampton, Southampton, United Kingdom
- Faculty of Medicine, School of Primary Care and Population Sciences, University of Southampton, Southampton, United Kingdom
| | - Ann Berrington
- Department of Social Statistics and Demography, University of Southampton, Southampton, United Kingdom
- ESRC Centre for Population Change, University of Southampton, Southampton, United Kingdom
| | - Nisreen A Alwan
- Faculty of Medicine, School of Primary Care and Population Sciences, University of Southampton, Southampton, United Kingdom
- NIHR Southampton Biomedical Research Centre, University of Southampton and University Hospital Southampton NHS Foundation Trust, Southampton, United Kingdom
- NIHR Applied Research Collaboration Wessex, Southampton, United Kingdom
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Socio-Economic Differences in the Prevalence of Single Motherhood in North America and Europe. EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF POPULATION-REVUE EUROPEENNE DE DEMOGRAPHIE 2021; 37:825-849. [PMID: 34785999 PMCID: PMC8575729 DOI: 10.1007/s10680-021-09591-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/07/2020] [Accepted: 05/31/2021] [Indexed: 12/02/2022]
Abstract
The study focuses on understanding the association between parental socio-economic status (SES) and the likelihood of women experiencing a first birth while single, and identifying societal factors that influence this association in 18 North American and European societies. Previous research has shown that single motherhood occurs disproportionately among those from with lower a lower parental SES. The study assesses whether this is caused by parental SES differences in the risk of single women experiencing a first conception leading to a live birth or by parental SES differences in how likely women are to enter a union during pregnancy. Additionally, an assessment is made of whether cross-national differences in these associations can be explained by a country’s access to family planning, norms regarding family formation, and economic inequality. Across countries, a negative gradient of parental SES was found on the likelihood of single women to experience a first pregnancy. The negative gradient was stronger in countries with better access to family planning. In some countries, the negative gradient of parental SES was aggravated during pregnancy because women from lower parental SES were less likely to enter a union. This was mostly found in societies with less conservative norms regarding marriage. The results suggest that certain developments in Western societies may increase socio-economic differentials in family demography.
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Song H. The unequal consequences of family structures for infant health. SOCIAL SCIENCE RESEARCH 2021; 100:102604. [PMID: 34627556 PMCID: PMC9812279 DOI: 10.1016/j.ssresearch.2021.102604] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/12/2020] [Revised: 05/10/2021] [Accepted: 07/02/2021] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
Rapid changes in American families have reshaped inequalities in child well-being. This paper examines the unequal consequences of family structures for infant health, focusing on birthweight. Existing studies mainly address the average association between marriage (versus singlehood) and birthweight. I extend the literature by 1) explicitly considering cohabitation and 2) exploring the heterogeneous associations based on mother's likelihood of union formation at conception. Pooling nationally representative data from the National Survey of Family Growth 2011-17, I analyze a sample of recent births (N = 4,376) born to mothers aged between 20 and 49 years. Propensity score methods are used to address selections. Results show that 1) compared to single mothers, married mothers reap birthweight benefits, while cohabiting mothers do not; 2) married mothers with a higher likelihood to marry at conception (i.e., more advantaged) reap even larger birthweight benefits than their low-likelihood counterparts (i.e., less advantaged). Overall, the findings reveal important and nuanced roles of family structure in the reproduction of intergenerational inequality through infant health.
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Affiliation(s)
- Haoming Song
- Department of Sociology, Brown University, 108 George Street, Providence, RI, 02912, USA.
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10
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Abstract
Interracial couples cohabit at higher rates than same-race couples, which is attributed to lower barriers to interracial cohabitation relative to intermarriage. This begs the question of whether the significance of cohabitation differs between interracial and same-race couples. Using data from the 2006-2017 National Survey of Family Growth, we assessed the meaning of interracial cohabitation by comparing the pregnancy risk, pregnancy intentions, and union transitions following a pregnancy among women in interracial and same-race cohabitations. The pregnancy and union transition behaviors of women in White-Black cohabitations resembled those of Black women in same-race cohabitations, suggesting that White-Black cohabitation serves as a substitute to marriage and reflecting barriers to the formation of White-Black intermarriages. The behaviors of women in White-Hispanic cohabitations fell between those of their same-race counterparts or resembled those of White women in same-race cohabitations. These findings suggest that White-Hispanic cohabitations take on a meaning between trial marriage and substitute to marriage and support views that Hispanics with White partners are a more assimilated group than Hispanics in same-race unions. Results for pregnancy intentions deviated from these patterns. Women in White-Black cohabitations were less likely than Black women in same-race cohabitations to have an unintended pregnancy, suggesting that White-Black cohabitations are considered marriage-like unions involving children. Women in White-Hispanic cohabitations were more likely than White and Hispanic women in same-race cohabitations to have an unintended pregnancy, reflecting possible concerns about social discrimination. These findings indicate heterogeneity in the significance of interracial cohabitation and continuing obstacles to interracial unions.
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Qian Z, Lichter DT. Racial Pairings and Fertility: Do Interracial Couples Have Fewer Children? JOURNAL OF MARRIAGE AND THE FAMILY 2021; 83:961-984. [PMID: 34262225 PMCID: PMC8274554 DOI: 10.1111/jomf.12758] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/09/2020] [Accepted: 02/01/2021] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE Our overall goal is largely descriptive-to compare recent fertility patterns between racially endogamous and exogamous couples in the United States. Evidence of lower fertility among exogamous or interracial couples arguably provides indirect evidence of social distance and cultural and economic integration. BACKGROUND The growth of interracial marriage and cohabitation has fueled the rise in biracial or mixed-race children. Fertility rates are uneven among racial and ethnic groups, seemingly rooted in stigma and cultural differences (e.g., fertility norms). Whether fertility is different among interracial couples is unclear: Fertility rates that largely conform to the population of racially endogamous White couples provide evidence of social integration whereas differential fertility may reveal gender dynamics in fertility decision-making, including power relationships that depend on the race of male and female partners. METHOD We pool data from the 2008 to 2017 American Community Survey to compare past-year fertility patterns among endogamously and interracially married and cohabiting couples. RESULTS Fertility is generally lower among racially exogamous than endogamous unions, especially among Asian American-White couples. Fertility among American Indian-White couples is much closer to patterns of White couples than of American Indian couples. Fertility among other interracial couples nevertheless varies by the race of male partners. That is, fertility of the Black male/White female and the Hispanic male/White female couples is similar to patterns found among endogamous Black and Hispanic couples, respectively. The White male/Black female and the White male/Hispanic female couples follow the fertility patterns of White couples. CONCLUSION In general, the fertility levels of interracial couples are intermediate between those of endogamous White couples and their endogamous Black, Hispanic, or American Indian counterparts, but vary significantly by the race-gender mix of partners.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Daniel T Lichter
- Departments of Policy Analysis and Management and Sociology, Cornell University
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Landeis M, Manning WD, Longmore MA, Giordano PC, Joyner K. The Relationship Context of Early Transitions to Parenthood: The Influence of Arrest. POPULATION RESEARCH AND POLICY REVIEW 2021; 40:723-746. [PMID: 34789954 PMCID: PMC8591584 DOI: 10.1007/s11113-020-09597-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/30/2019] [Accepted: 06/20/2020] [Indexed: 10/23/2022]
Abstract
In the U.S., many young adults who have had contact with the criminal justice system are parents. Using the Toledo Adolescent Relationships Study (n = 1321), we drew on family demography and criminology literatures to examine the association between arrest, an understudied indicator of contact with the criminal justice system, and transitions to early parenthood. We also distinguished transitions to parenthood that occurred within four different relationship contexts: (1) single; (2) dating; (3) cohabiting; and (4) married. Using event history analyses, we found that young men and women who experienced an arrest transitioned to parenthood earlier than their counterparts who were not arrested. Further, men with an arrest, compared to men who had not been arrested, were more likely to report that they were dating the biological mother of their first child around the time of birth. In contrast, women with an arrest had an increased likelihood of having their first birth while cohabiting with the biological father. Our results highlighted the importance of a prior arrest for early transitions to parenthood and are relevant for understanding the intergenerational transmission of disadvantage and the diverging destinies of children and parents. Furthermore, the gender differences in the results illustrated the importance of including women in criminal justice analyses and men in fertility analyses.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marissa Landeis
- Department of Sociology, and the Center for Family and Demographic Research, Bowling Green State University, Williams 223, Bowling Green, OH 43403, USA
| | - Wendy D. Manning
- Department of Sociology, and the Center for Family and Demographic Research, Bowling Green State University, Williams 223, Bowling Green, OH 43403, USA
| | - Monica A. Longmore
- Department of Sociology, and the Center for Family and Demographic Research, Bowling Green State University, Williams 223, Bowling Green, OH 43403, USA
| | - Peggy C. Giordano
- Department of Sociology, and the Center for Family and Demographic Research, Bowling Green State University, Williams 223, Bowling Green, OH 43403, USA
| | - Kara Joyner
- Department of Sociology, and the Center for Family and Demographic Research, Bowling Green State University, Williams 223, Bowling Green, OH 43403, USA
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The role of premarital cohabitation in the timing of first birth in China. DEMOGRAPHIC RESEARCH 2021. [DOI: 10.4054/demres.2021.45.8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/05/2022] Open
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Guzzo KB. A Research Brief on Prospective Marital Expectations among Cohabitors with Initial Marital Intentions. JOURNAL OF FAMILY ISSUES 2020; 41:1979-2001. [PMID: 33304026 PMCID: PMC7723350] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Grants] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/12/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Karen Benjamin Guzzo
- Department of Sociology, Bowling Green State University, Bowling Green, OH 43403-0222, 419-372-3312
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Arocho R. "I have no idea:" Uncertainty in high school seniors' marital expectations. POPULATION RESEARCH AND POLICY REVIEW 2020; 40:771-793. [PMID: 34305215 DOI: 10.1007/s11113-020-09614-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/23/2022]
Abstract
Despite changes in marriage's role in young adulthood, youth in the United States report similar or higher expectations to marry than those from decades before, and very few report explicit expectations to not marry. Marital expectations may be one way to understand if the U.S. is indeed experiencing a second demographic transition, and uncertainty in those answers may provide additional information beyond simply yes and no. Using public-use data from 1976 to 2017 from the 12th Grade Monitoring the Future annual cross-sectional surveys, I found that young men and women were more likely to report uncertainty than explicitly expect not to marry, and that boys were generally more uncertain than girls. Slight changes in past decades suggest that boys are becoming more certain regarding marriage, however, and gender differences have diminished over time. Additionally, between 2008 and 2017, I found that boys with the greatest educational prospects were the least likely to report uncertainty about marriage. Uncertainty is common in adolescent marital expectations and should be considered as a possibly informative answer to questions about hypothetical marriages. Results suggest that marriage continues to hold strong meaning in adolescents' ideals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rachel Arocho
- Department of Behavioral Sciences, Utah Valley University, 800 W University Parkway, Mail Stop 115, Orem, Utah 84058
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Arocho R, Dush CMK. "Best-Laid Plans": Barriers to Meeting Marital Timing Desires Over the Life Course. MARRIAGE & FAMILY REVIEW 2020; 56:633-656. [PMID: 32753771 PMCID: PMC7402592 DOI: 10.1080/01494929.2020.1737620] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/11/2023]
Abstract
Most youth desire to marry, and often around a certain age, but many individuals marry earlier or later than originally desired. Off-time marriage could have consequences for subsequent relationship stability and mental health. Whereas barriers to marriage goals in the short term have been studied extensively, predictors of meeting marital timing expectations over the life course are less well understood. This study examined possible barriers, including socioeconomic characteristics and family experiences, both background and formation, to meeting marital timing desires by age 40 using data from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1979 cohort (NLSY79). Multinomial logistic regression revealed that greater education, religiousness, cohabitation, and premarital childbearing were associated with delayed or forgone marriage, but associations varied by gender and the age at which respondents stated their expectations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rachel Arocho
- CB210J, MS 115, Utah Valley University, 800 W University Parkway, Orem, Utah 84057
| | - Claire M Kamp Dush
- Ohio State University, 151E Campbell Hall, 1787 Neil Ave., Columbus, Ohio 43210
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17
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Abstract
The young adulthood years are demographically dense. Dr. Ronald Rindfuss made this claim when he was Population Association of America (PAA) president in 1991 (Rindfuss 1991), and this conclusion holds today. I offer both an update of his work by including Millennials and a new view on young adulthood by focusing on an increasingly common experience: cohabitation. I believe we need to move away from our marriage-centric lens of young adulthood and embrace the complexity that cohabitation offers. The cohabitation boom is continuing with no evidence of a slowdown. Young adults are experiencing complex relationship biographies, and social science research is struggling to keep pace. Increasingly, there is a decoupling of cohabitation and marriage, suggesting new ways of framing our understanding of relationships in young adulthood. As a field, we can do better to ensure that our theories, methods, and data collections better reflect the new relationship reality faced by young adults.
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Guzzo KB, Hayford SR. Pathways to Parenthood in Social and Family Context: Decade in Review, 2020. JOURNAL OF MARRIAGE AND THE FAMILY 2020; 82:117-144. [PMID: 34012172 PMCID: PMC8130890 DOI: 10.1111/jomf.12618] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/29/2019] [Accepted: 07/29/2019] [Indexed: 05/12/2023]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE This article reviews research from the past decade on patterns, trends, and differentials in the pathway to parenthood. BACKGROUND Whether, and under what circumstances, people become parents has implications for individual identity, family relationships, the well-being of adults and children, and population growth and age structure. Understanding the factors that influence pathways to parenthood is central to the study of families and can inform policies aimed at changing childbearing behaviors. METHOD This review summarizes recent trends in fertility as well as research on the predictors and correlates of childbearing, with a focus on the United States and on research most relevant to family scholars. We document fertility differentials and prevailing explanations for variation across sub-groups and discuss alternative pathways to parenthood, such as adoption. The article suggests avenues for future research, outlines emerging theoretical developments, and concludes with a discussion of fertility policy. RESULTS U.S. fertility has declined in recent years; whether fertility rates will increase is unclear. Elements of the broader social context such as the Great Recession and increasing economic inequality have impacted pathways to parenthood, and there is growing divergence in behaviors across social class. Scholars of childbearing have developed theories to better understand how childbearing is shaped by life course processes and social context. CONCLUSION Future research on the pathways to parenthood should continue to study group differentials, refine measurement and theories, and better integrate men and couples. Childbearing research is relevant for social policy, but ideological factors impact the application of research to policy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Karen Benjamin Guzzo
- Department of Sociology, Bowling Green State University, Bowling Green, OH 43403-0222
| | - Sarah R Hayford
- Department of Sociology, The Ohio State University 1885 Neil Avenue Mall Columbus, OH, 43210
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Change in the Stability of First Premarital Cohabitation Among Women in the United States, 1983-2013. Demography 2020; 56:427-450. [PMID: 30834488 DOI: 10.1007/s13524-019-00765-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/27/2022]
Abstract
The rapid growth in cohabitation over the past quarter-century necessitates studies of changes in the stability and outcomes of cohabitation. We utilized data from the 1988 National Survey of Family Growth (NSFG) and the most recent NSFG data from 2011-2013 to examine the outcomes of two comparable cohorts of first premarital cohabiting women (1983-1988 and 2006-2013). Our results showed that cohabitations formed between 2006 and 2013 lasted longer-18 months, on average-than those formed in the mid-1980s, which lasted for an average of 12 months. We found that the lengthening of cohabitation over time cuts across sociodemographic characteristics-race/ethnicity, education, and motherhood status-and resulted mostly from the declining rate of transitioning to marriage. We found some support for the diverging destinies perspective in that disparities in the outcomes of cohabitation by education and by cohabiting birth have widened over time. Our analyses showed that changes in the outcomes of first premarital cohabiting unions over the past three decades were not due to compositional shifts in cohabitors. These results demonstrate the evolving dynamics of cohabitation over a 30-year window.
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Arocho R. Do Expectations of Divorce Predict Union Formation in the Transition to Adulthood? JOURNAL OF MARRIAGE AND THE FAMILY 2019; 81:979-990. [PMID: 31530959 PMCID: PMC6748045 DOI: 10.1111/jomf.12571] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/15/2018] [Accepted: 02/26/2019] [Indexed: 05/10/2023]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE This study describes the association between explicit expectations to divorce and subsequent first union formation over the transition to adulthood (ages 18-28). BACKGROUND Expectations for marriage in young adulthood predict union formation. Even before marrying, young adults may express a perceived risk of eventual divorce, and expectations of divorce may also have implications for union formation over the transition to adulthood. METHOD Data from the 2005-2015 years of the Panel Study of Income Dynamics Transition to Adulthood Supplement (n = 2052) were used to estimate the association between expectations to divorce and entry into first premarital cohabitation and first marriage using discrete-time logistic and multinomial logistic survival models. RESULTS As hypothesized, greater expectations for divorce predicted slower entrance into first marriage, even controlling for expectations for marriage and various sociodemographic characteristics, and predicted a greater likelihood of both remaining single and being first observed cohabiting instead of marrying in young adulthood for both men and women. CONCLUSION Despite desiring to marry, young adults may delay marriage if they are concerned about their risk of future divorce.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rachel Arocho
- Postdoctoral Scholar, Population Science, Carolina Population Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, 123 West Franklin Street, Chapel Hill, NC 27516,
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21
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Valdez A, Nowotny KM, Zhao QW, Cepeda A. Interpersonal Partner Relationships, Bonds to Children, and Informal Social Control among Persistent Male Offenders. SOCIAL PROBLEMS 2019; 66:468-483. [PMID: 31354176 PMCID: PMC6636053 DOI: 10.1093/socpro/spy018] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
This qualitative study applied a life course framework to characterize the nature of interpersonal partner relationships of Mexican American young adult men affiliated with street gangs during their adolescence. Data come from a 15-year longitudinal mixed-method cohort study conducted in San Antonio, Texas. We analyzed semi-structured interviews conducted with a subsample (n = 40) during the course of three face-to-face sessions to explore the men's motivations, aspirations, and goals to lead conventional lives, despite their criminal justice involvement. Specifically, we focus on the complex nature of maintaining ties to children, the navigation of complicated family structures, the processes of seeking partners with economic resources, and on partnerships with criminal and delinquent partners. We document the complex interpersonal nature of these relationships as men contend with serial incarceration and their desires and motivations to desist from criminal behavior.
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22
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Nitsche N, Matysiak A, Van Bavel J, Vignoli D. Partners' Educational Pairings and Fertility Across Europe. Demography 2019; 55:1195-1232. [PMID: 29881980 DOI: 10.1007/s13524-018-0681-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
We provide new evidence on the education-fertility relationship by using EU-SILC panel data on 24 European countries to investigate how couples' educational pairings predict their childbearing behavior. We focus on differences in first-, second-, and third-birth rates among couples with varying combinations of partners' education. Our results show important differences in how education relates to parity progressions depending on the education of the partner. First, highly educated homogamous couples show a distinct childbearing behavior in most country clusters. They tend to postpone the first birth most and display the highest second- and third-birth rates. Second, contrary to what may be expected based on the "new home economics" approach, hypergamous couples with a highly educated male and a lower-educated female partner display among the lowest second-birth transitions. Our findings underscore the relevance of interacting both partners' education for a better understanding of the education-fertility relationship.
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Affiliation(s)
- Natalie Nitsche
- Wittgenstein Centre (IIASA, VID/ÖAW, WU), Vienna Institute of Demography/Austrian Academy of Sciences, Vienna, Austria.
| | - Anna Matysiak
- Wittgenstein Centre (IIASA, VID/ÖAW, WU), Vienna Institute of Demography/Austrian Academy of Sciences, Vienna, Austria
| | - Jan Van Bavel
- Centre for Sociological Research, University of Leuven (KU Leuven), Leuven, Belgium
| | - Daniele Vignoli
- Department of Statistics, Computer Science, Applications, University of Florence, Florence, Italy
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23
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Union Transitions and Fertility Within First Premarital Cohabitations in Canada: Diverging Patterns by Education? Demography 2019; 56:151-167. [PMID: 30460494 DOI: 10.1007/s13524-018-0741-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/27/2022]
Abstract
Cohabitation has become increasingly accepted and normalized as part of the family system in Canada and has become the most common way to form a first union. The changing role of cohabitation in the family system is often understood as being driven by the ideational changes associated with the second demographic transition, but increasing international evidence indicates that this explanation is incomplete. Using nationally representative retrospective data from Canadians born between 1940 and 1979 from the 2011 General Social Survey, this study examines transitions out of first premarital cohabitation and fertility within these unions as two measures of the changing role of cohabitation. Across birth cohorts, Canadians are increasingly likely to use cohabitation as an alternative to marriage and less likely to use cohabitation as a short-lived prelude to marriage. These overall trends support the second demographic transition perspective. However, this study also finds that Canadians without a bachelor's degree are far more likely to experience a birth within cohabitation and that their likelihood of transitioning to marriage has declined steeply across birth cohorts. This educational gradient in childbearing in cohabitation and the increasing educational differences in union transitions over time provide support for the diverging destinies thesis in Canada.
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24
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Wright L. Union Transitions and Fertility Within First Premarital Cohabitations in Canada: Diverging Patterns by Education? Demography 2019. [PMID: 30460494 DOI: 10.1007/s13524018-0741-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 04/19/2023]
Abstract
Cohabitation has become increasingly accepted and normalized as part of the family system in Canada and has become the most common way to form a first union. The changing role of cohabitation in the family system is often understood as being driven by the ideational changes associated with the second demographic transition, but increasing international evidence indicates that this explanation is incomplete. Using nationally representative retrospective data from Canadians born between 1940 and 1979 from the 2011 General Social Survey, this study examines transitions out of first premarital cohabitation and fertility within these unions as two measures of the changing role of cohabitation. Across birth cohorts, Canadians are increasingly likely to use cohabitation as an alternative to marriage and less likely to use cohabitation as a short-lived prelude to marriage. These overall trends support the second demographic transition perspective. However, this study also finds that Canadians without a bachelor's degree are far more likely to experience a birth within cohabitation and that their likelihood of transitioning to marriage has declined steeply across birth cohorts. This educational gradient in childbearing in cohabitation and the increasing educational differences in union transitions over time provide support for the diverging destinies thesis in Canada.
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Affiliation(s)
- Laura Wright
- Department of Sociology, University of Saskatchewan, 1019 Arts Building, 9 Campus Drive, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, S7N 5A5, Canada.
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25
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Anyawie M, Manning W. Cohabitation and Contraceptive Use in the United States: A Focus on Race and Ethnicity. POPULATION RESEARCH AND POLICY REVIEW 2019. [DOI: 10.1007/s11113-018-09506-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/27/2022]
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26
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Thorsen ML. Shifting Influences of Pregnancy on Union Formation across Age and Union Stability across Cohabitation Duration. JOURNAL OF FAMILY ISSUES 2019; 40:190-214. [PMID: 31235989 PMCID: PMC6590915 DOI: 10.1177/0192513x18806554] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/09/2023]
Abstract
Nonmarital pregnancy increases the likelihood of entering a marital or cohabiting union. The timing of a pregnancy within the life course of an individual or relationship duration may also impact the likelihood of forming coresidential unions and their stability. This study examines the association between non-marital pregnancy and first union formation and how this varies across age. It also considers whether the influence of pregnancy on the stability of cohabitations shifts across their duration. Using data on young adults in the U.S. (Add Health), competing-risk event-history models examine the time-varying influence of pregnancy on union formation and stability. Findings suggest that pregnancy is more strongly associated with union formation during adolescence, becoming less influential as women age. Within cohabitations, pregnancy had a bigger impact on increasing the likelihood of marriage early within unions, but the longer a couple cohabited the less likely they were to transition to marriage when pregnant.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maggie L Thorsen
- Department of Sociology & Anthropology, Montana State University, 2-128 Wilson Hall, P.O. Box 172380, Bozeman, MT 59718, , (406)994-5248
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27
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Pepin JR, Sayer LC, Casper LM. Marital Status and Mothers' Time Use: Childcare, Housework, Leisure, and Sleep. Demography 2018; 55:107-133. [PMID: 29423629 DOI: 10.1007/s13524-018-0647-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
Assumptions that single mothers are "time poor" compared with married mothers are ubiquitous. We tested theorized associations derived from the time poverty thesis and the gender perspective using the 2003-2012 American Time Use Surveys (ATUS). We found marital status differentiated housework, leisure, and sleep time, but did not influence the amount of time that mothers provided childcare. Net of the number of employment hours, married mothers did more housework and slept less than never-married and divorced mothers, counter to expectations of the time poverty thesis. Never-married and cohabiting mothers reported more total and more sedentary leisure time than married mothers. We assessed the influence of demographic differences among mothers to account for variation in their time use by marital status. Compositional differences explained more than two-thirds of the variance in sedentary leisure time between married and never-married mothers, but only one-third of the variance between married and cohabiting mothers. The larger unexplained gap in leisure quality between cohabiting and married mothers is consistent with the gender perspective.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joanna R Pepin
- Department of Sociology, University of Maryland, 3108 Parren Mitchell Building, College Park, MD, 20742, USA.
| | - Liana C Sayer
- Department of Sociology, University of Maryland, 4133 Parren Mitchell Building, College Park, MD, 20742, USA
| | - Lynne M Casper
- Department of Sociology, University of Southern California, 851 Downey Way HSH313, Los Angeles, CA, 90089, USA
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28
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The role of education in the intersection of partnership transitions and motherhood in Europe and the United States. DEMOGRAPHIC RESEARCH 2018. [DOI: 10.4054/demres.2018.39.27] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/05/2022] Open
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29
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Guzzo KB. A Research Note on the Stability of Coresidential Unions Formed Postconception. JOURNAL OF MARRIAGE AND THE FAMILY 2018; 80:841-852. [PMID: 30319144 PMCID: PMC6181453 DOI: 10.1111/jomf.12498] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/08/2017] [Accepted: 04/11/2018] [Indexed: 06/08/2023]
Abstract
There is a large literature examining the stability of mid-pregnancy unions, and parallel work on unions formed after a nonmarital birth, but research has yet to compare pre- and post-birth unions and simultaneously consider whether the union is with the father or a new partner. Using the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth, 1997 Cohort, the author compares the stability of coresidential unions (cohabitations and marriages) among three groups of mothers with non-union first conceptions: those with a mid-pregnancy union with the father (N = 203), those with a post-birth union with the father (N = 333), and those with a union with a new partner (N = 342). Compared to mid-pregnancy unions with the father, post-birth father unions are 35% more likely to dissolve. New-partner unions are more likely to dissolve than both types of father unions. These associations persist when accounting for union type and socioeconomic and demographic characteristics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Karen Benjamin Guzzo
- Department of Sociology, Bowling Green State University, Bowling Green, OH 43403-0222, 419-372-3312
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30
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Perelli-Harris B, Hoherz S, Addo F, Lappegård T, Evans A, Sassler S, Styrc M. Do Marriage and Cohabitation Provide Benefits to Health in Mid-Life? The Role of Childhood Selection Mechanisms and Partnership Characteristics Across Countries. POPULATION RESEARCH AND POLICY REVIEW 2018; 37:703-728. [PMID: 30546176 PMCID: PMC6267248 DOI: 10.1007/s11113-018-9467-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/15/2017] [Accepted: 04/03/2018] [Indexed: 11/02/2022]
Abstract
Extensive research has found that marriage provides health benefits to individuals, particularly in the U.S. The rise of cohabitation, however, raises questions about whether simply being in an intimate co-residential partnership conveys the same health benefits as marriage. Here, we use OLS regression to compare differences between partnered and unpartnered, and cohabiting and married individuals with respect to self-rated health in mid-life, an understudied part of the lifecourse. We pay particular attention to selection mechanisms arising in childhood and characteristics of the partnership. We compare results in five countries with different social, economic, and policy contexts: the U.S. (NLSY), U.K. (UKHLS), Australia (HILDA), Germany (SOEP), and Norway (GGS). Results show that living with a partner is positively associated with self-rated health in mid-life in all countries, but that controlling for children, prior separation, and current socio-economic status eliminates differences in Germany and Norway. Significant differences between cohabitation and marriage are only evident in the U.S. and the U.K., but controlling for childhood background, union duration, and prior union dissolution eliminates partnership differentials. The findings suggest that cohabitation in the U.S. and U.K., both liberal welfare regimes, seems to be very different than in the other countries. The results challenge the assumption that only marriage is beneficial for health.
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Affiliation(s)
- Brienna Perelli-Harris
- University of Southampton, Southampton, UK
- School of Social Sciences, University of Southampton, Bldg 58, Room 4013, Southampton, SO17 1BJ UK
| | | | | | | | - Ann Evans
- Australian National University, Canberra, ACT Australia
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31
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Kuo JCL, Raley RK. Diverging Patterns of Union Transition Among Cohabitors by Race/Ethnicity and Education: Trends and Marital Intentions in the United States. Demography 2017; 53:921-35. [PMID: 27306763 DOI: 10.1007/s13524-016-0483-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 32] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/21/2022]
Abstract
The rise of cohabitation in family process among American young adults and declining rates of marriage among cohabitors are considered by some scholars as evidence for the importance of society-wide ideational shifts propelling recent changes in family. With data on two cohabiting cohorts from the NSFG 1995 and 2006-2010, the current study finds that marriage rates among cohabitors have declined steeply among those with no college degree, resulting in growing educational disparities over time. Moreover, there are no differences in marital intentions by education (or race/ethnicity) among recent cohabitors. We discuss how findings of this study speak to the changes in the dynamics of social stratification system in the United States and suggest that institutional and material constraints are at least as important as ideational accounts in understanding family change and family behavior of contemporary young adults.
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Affiliation(s)
- Janet Chen-Lan Kuo
- Department of Sociology, National Taiwan University, No. 1, Sec. 4, Roosevelt Rd., Da-an Dist., Taipei City, 10617, Taiwan.
| | - R Kelly Raley
- Department of Sociology and the Population Research Center, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, USA
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32
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Smith C, Crosnoe R, Cavanagh SE. Family Instability and Children's Health. FAMILY RELATIONS 2017; 66:601-613. [PMID: 38323140 PMCID: PMC10846885 DOI: 10.1111/fare.12272] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/09/2016] [Accepted: 08/08/2017] [Indexed: 02/08/2024]
Abstract
Research on family instability is fertile ground for translation into policy and practice. This article describes how basic science in this area can more effectively support work in later stages of the translational research process. To begin, the scope of family instability is outlined with trends, causes, and effects. Next, a conceptual model of the effects of family instability on children's health identifies focal aspects that could be leveraged for translational research: developmental domain, developmental time, mechanisms, and points of variation. The guidelines presented are meant to be general and applicable to a variety of topics and fields in which family scholars aim to improve basic research that can contribute to and move forward a translational family science.
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33
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Guzzo KB. Shifts in Higher-Order Unions and Stepfamilies among Currently Cohabiting and Married Women of Childbearing Age. JOURNAL OF FAMILY ISSUES 2017; 38:1775-1799. [PMID: 28983140 PMCID: PMC5624729 DOI: 10.1177/0192513x16664180] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/05/2023]
Abstract
Shifts in union formation and childbearing have undoubtedly altered the prevalence and structure of higher-order unions and stepfamilies, but no study has examined trends over time. Comparing the 1988 and 2011-2013 cycles of the National Survey of Family Growth (NSFG), I produce estimates of repartnering and stepfamily formation among currently partnered women aged 15-44. The percentage of intact unions that are remarriages stayed stable (around 27-28%), but a growing proportion of currently married and cohabiting women had another cohabiting partner in the past. The percentage of intact unions that are stepfamilies increased from 24% to 31%, with an increase in cohabiting stepfamilies from 19% to 39% of all stepfamilies. Further, while the majority of remarriages are stepfamilies, the majority of women's stepfamilies are no longer remarriages due to union formation among never-married parents. Cohabiting (but not marital) stepfamilies also exhibited changes in which partner had children and in shared childbearing.
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Affiliation(s)
- Karen Benjamin Guzzo
- Department of Sociology, Bowling Green State University, Bowling Green, OH 43403-0222, 419-372-3312
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34
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Does It Matter What She Wants? The Role of Individual Preferences Against Unmarried Motherhood in Young Women’s Likelihood of a Nonmarital First Birth. Demography 2017; 54:1451-1475. [DOI: 10.1007/s13524-017-0586-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/19/2022]
Abstract
Abstract
Most young people in the United States express the desire to marry. Norms at all socioeconomic levels posit marriage as the optimal context for childbearing. At the same time, nonmarital fertility accounts for approximately 40 % of U.S. births, experienced disproportionately by women with educational attainment less than a bachelor’s degree. Research has shown that women’s intentions for the number and timing of children and couples’ intent to marry are strong predictors of realized fertility and marriage. The present study investigates whether U.S. young women’s preferences about nonmarital fertility, as stated before childbearing begins, predict their likelihood of having a nonmarital first birth. I track marriage and fertility histories through ages 24–30 of women asked at ages 11–16 whether they would consider unmarried childbearing. One-quarter of women who responded “no” in fact had a nonmarital birth by age 24–30. The ability of women and their partners to access material resources in adulthood were, as expected, the strongest predictors of the likelihood of nonmarital childbearing. Nonetheless, I find that women who said they would not consider nonmarital childbearing had substantially higher hazards of fertility postponement and especially of marital fertility, even after controlling for race/ethnicity, mother’s educational attainment, family of origin intactness, self-efficacy and planning ability, perceived future prospects, and markers of own educational attainment and work experience into early adulthood.
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35
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Krapf S. Moving in or Breaking Up? The Role of Distance in the Development of Romantic Relationships. EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF POPULATION-REVUE EUROPEENNE DE DEMOGRAPHIE 2017; 34:313-336. [PMID: 30976249 DOI: 10.1007/s10680-017-9428-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/23/2016] [Accepted: 04/08/2017] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
Most romantic relationships start with a living apart together (LAT) phase during which the partners live in two separate households. Over time, a couple might decide to move in together, to separate, or to remain together while maintaining their nonresidential status. This study investigates the competing risks that partners in a LAT relationship will experience the transition to coresidence or to separation. We consider the amount of time LAT partners have to travel to see each other to be a key determinant of relationship development. For our statistical analyses, we use seven waves of the German Family Panel Pairfam (2008/2009-2014/2015) and analyze couples in the age group 20-40 years. We distinguish between short-distance relationships (the partners have to travel less than one hour) and long-distance relationships (the partners have to travel one hour or more). Estimating a competing risks model, we find that couples in long-distance relationships are more likely to separate than those living in close proximity. By contrast, the probability of experiencing a transition to coresidence is lower for LAT couples in long-distance than for those in short-distance relationships. Interaction analyses reveal that distance seems to be irrelevant for the relationship development of couples with two nonemployed (unemployed, in education or other inactive) partners.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sandra Krapf
- Institute of Sociology and Social Psychology, University of Cologne, Greinstr. 2, 50939 Cologne, Germany
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36
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Abstract
Children from prior relationships potentially complicate fertility decision-making in new cohabitations and marriages. On the one hand, the "value of children" perspective suggests that unions with and without stepchildren have similar-and deliberate-reasons for shared childbearing. On the other hand, multipartnered fertility (MPF) research suggests that childbearing across partnerships is often unintended. Using the 2006-2010 National Survey of Family Growth and event-history models, I examine the role of stepfamily status on cohabiting and married women's fertility and birth intendedness, with attention to union type and stepfamily configuration. Adjusting for covariates, women in stepfamily unions are more likely to have a first shared birth in a union than women in unions in which neither partner has children from past relationships, but stepfamily births are less likely to be intended than unintended. Further, this association varies by union type: married women have similar birth risks across stepfamily status, but births are less likely to be intended in marital stepfamilies. For cohabitors, women in a stepfamily are more likely to have a birth than women in nonstepfamily unions, with no differences in intendedness. Configuration (whose children and how many) also matters; for instance, women with one child from a past relationship are more likely to have a birth and to have an intended than unintended birth than women with other stepfamily configurations. It appears that children from either partner's prior relationships influences subsequent fertility decision-making, undermining the utility of the "value of children" perspective for explaining childbearing behaviors in complex families.
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Affiliation(s)
- Karen Benjamin Guzzo
- Department of Sociology, Bowling Green State University, Bowling Green, OH, 43403-0222, USA.
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37
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Guzzo KB. Is Stepfamily Status Associated With Cohabiting and Married Women's Fertility Behaviors? Demography 2017; 54:45-70. [PMID: 28078621 DOI: 10.1007/s13524-016-0534-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
Abstract
Children from prior relationships potentially complicate fertility decision-making in new cohabitations and marriages. On the one hand, the "value of children" perspective suggests that unions with and without stepchildren have similar-and deliberate-reasons for shared childbearing. On the other hand, multipartnered fertility (MPF) research suggests that childbearing across partnerships is often unintended. Using the 2006-2010 National Survey of Family Growth and event-history models, I examine the role of stepfamily status on cohabiting and married women's fertility and birth intendedness, with attention to union type and stepfamily configuration. Adjusting for covariates, women in stepfamily unions are more likely to have a first shared birth in a union than women in unions in which neither partner has children from past relationships, but stepfamily births are less likely to be intended than unintended. Further, this association varies by union type: married women have similar birth risks across stepfamily status, but births are less likely to be intended in marital stepfamilies. For cohabitors, women in a stepfamily are more likely to have a birth than women in nonstepfamily unions, with no differences in intendedness. Configuration (whose children and how many) also matters; for instance, women with one child from a past relationship are more likely to have a birth and to have an intended than unintended birth than women with other stepfamily configurations. It appears that children from either partner's prior relationships influences subsequent fertility decision-making, undermining the utility of the "value of children" perspective for explaining childbearing behaviors in complex families.
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Affiliation(s)
- Karen Benjamin Guzzo
- Department of Sociology, Bowling Green State University, Bowling Green, OH, 43403-0222, USA.
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38
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Gibson-Davis CM, Ananat EO, Gassman-Pines A. Midpregnancy Marriage and Divorce: Why the Death of Shotgun Marriage Has Been Greatly Exaggerated. Demography 2016; 53:1693-1715. [PMID: 27804061 PMCID: PMC5954830 DOI: 10.1007/s13524-016-0510-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
Conventional wisdom holds that births following the colloquially termed "shotgun marriage"-that is, births to parents who married between conception and the birth-are nearing obsolescence. To investigate trends in shotgun marriage, we matched North Carolina administrative data on nearly 800,000 first births among white and black mothers to marriage and divorce records. We found that among married births, midpregnancy-married births (our preferred term for shotgun-married births) have been relatively stable at about 10 % over the past quarter-century while increasing substantially for vulnerable population subgroups. In 2012, among black and white less-educated and younger women, midpregnancy-married births accounted for approximately 20 % to 25 % of married first births. The increasing representation of midpregnancy-married births among married births raises concerns about well-being among at-risk families because midpregnancy marriages may be quite fragile. Our analysis revealed, however, that midpregnancy marriages were more likely to dissolve only among more advantaged groups. Of those groups considered to be most at risk of divorce-namely, black women with lower levels of education and who were younger-midpregnancy marriages had the same or lower likelihood of divorce as preconception marriages. Our results suggest an overlooked resiliency in a type of marriage that has only increased in salience.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Elizabeth O Ananat
- Sanford School of Public Policy, Duke University, PO Box 90245, Durham, NC, 27708, USA
| | - Anna Gassman-Pines
- Sanford School of Public Policy, Duke University, PO Box 90245, Durham, NC, 27708, USA
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Addo FR, Sassler S, Williams K. REEXAMINING THE ASSOCIATION OF MATERNAL AGE AND MARITAL STATUS AT FIRST BIRTH WITH YOUTH EDUCATIONAL ATTAINMENT. JOURNAL OF MARRIAGE AND THE FAMILY 2016; 78:1252-1268. [PMID: 28042174 PMCID: PMC5198901 DOI: 10.1111/jomf.12360] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/01/2015] [Accepted: 07/01/2016] [Indexed: 05/19/2023]
Abstract
Using data from the linked Children and Young Adult sample (N = 2,865) of the NLSY79, we reexamined the association of maternal age and marital status at birth with youth high school completion, assessing multiple age categories and race/ethnic variations. Youth born to older teen mothers were no more likely to graduate from high school than those born to the youngest teen mothers. Although delaying childbirth to young adulthood (age 20-24) was associated with greater odds of children's high school completion compared to the earliest teen births, those born to young adult mothers were disadvantaged compared to those born to mothers age 25 or older. Being born to an unmarried mother was associated with lower odds of high school completion but this did not fully explain the estimated effect of maternal age at birth. We found no evidence that maternal age at birth more strongly predicted high school graduation for White compared to Latino or Black youth.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fenaba R Addo
- Department of Consumer Science, 4204 Nancy Nicholas Hall, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI 53703
| | - Sharon Sassler
- Department of Policy Analysis and Management, 297 Martha Van Rensselaer Hall, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853
| | - Kristi Williams
- Department of Sociology, 238 Townshend Hall, The Ohio State University, Columbus OH 43210
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Abstract
This study considers the developmental origins of alcohol use in young adulthood. Despite substantial evidence linking committed romantic relationships to less problematic alcohol use in adulthood, the uniformity of these protective benefits across different romantic relationships is unclear. Further, the extent to which the establishment and maintenance of these romantic relationships is preceded by earlier adolescence alcohol use remains unknown. To address these gaps in the literature, the current study utilized multitiple-dimensional, multiple-informant data spanning 20 years on 585 individuals in the Child Development Project. Findings from both variable- and person-centered analyses support a progression of associations predicting adolescent alcohol use (ages 15-16), drinking, and romantic relationships in early adulthood (ages 18-25), and then problematic young adult alcohol use (age 27). Although adolescent alcohol use predicted greater romantic involvement and turnover in early adulthood, romantic involvement, but not turnover, appeared to reduce the likelihood of later problematic drinking. These findings remained robust even after accounting for a wide array of selection and socialization factors. Moreover, characteristics of the individuals (e.g., gender) and of their romantic relationships (e.g., partner substance use problems and romantic relationship satisfaction) did not moderate these findings. Findings underscore the importance of using a developmental-relational perspective to consider the antecedents and consequences of alcohol use early in the life span.
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Thornberry TP, Krohn MD, Augustyn MB, Buchanan M, Greenman SJ. The impact of adolescent risk behavior on partner relationships. ADVANCES IN LIFE COURSE RESEARCH 2016; 28:6-21. [PMID: 27429604 PMCID: PMC4941232 DOI: 10.1016/j.alcr.2015.04.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/06/2023]
Abstract
Prior literature suggests that involvement in adolescent risk behaviors will have short- and long-term consequences that disrupt the orderly flow of later development, including impacts on patterns of partner relationships. In this study, we explore how adolescent involvement in delinquency, drug use, and sexual behavior at an early age affects the likelihood and timing of both marriage and cohabitation using a sample from the Rochester Youth Development Study. We also examine the direct effects of dropping out of high school, teenage parenthood, and financial stress during emerging adulthood as well as their potential role as mediators of the relationships between adolescent risk behaviors and partnering for both males and females. Overall, there is not very strong support for a direct relationship between adolescent delinquency, drug use, or early sexual behavior and patterns of partner formation. In contrast, the more proximal relationships, indicated by precocious transitions to adulthood and financial instability, are more consistently related to partner formation. These findings support models of cumulative disadvantage: early adolescent problem behaviors are weakly related to partner formation, but appear to set in motion cascading consequences that influence the transition to adulthood and, in turn, these more proximal variables are more consistently related to partner formation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Terence P. Thornberry
- Department of Criminology and Criminal Justice, University of Maryland, 2220 LeFrak Hall, College Park, MD 20742, United States
| | - Marvin D. Krohn
- Department of Sociology and Criminology & Law, University of Florida, P.O. Box 117330, Gainesville, FL 32611, United States
| | - Megan Bears Augustyn
- Department of Criminal Justice, The University of Texas at San Antonio, 501 W. Cesar Chavez Blvd., San Antonio, TX 78207, United States
| | - Molly Buchanan
- Department of Sociology and Criminology & Law, University of Florida, P.O. Box 117330, Gainesville, FL 32611, United States
| | - Sarah J. Greenman
- Department of Criminal Justice and Forensic Science, Hamline University, 1536 Hewitt Avenue, St. Paul, MN 55104, United States
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Lichter DT, Michelmore K, Turner RN, Sassler S. Pathways to a Stable Union? Pregnancy and Childbearing Among Cohabiting and Married Couples. POPULATION RESEARCH AND POLICY REVIEW 2016. [DOI: 10.1007/s11113-016-9392-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
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Trends in Child Poverty Using an Improved Measure of Poverty. Acad Pediatr 2016; 16:S60-6. [PMID: 27044704 DOI: 10.1016/j.acap.2016.01.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/21/2015] [Revised: 01/12/2016] [Accepted: 01/15/2016] [Indexed: 11/23/2022]
Abstract
The official measure of poverty has been used to assess trends in children's poverty rates for many decades. But because of flaws in official poverty statistics, these basic trends have the potential to be misleading. We use an augmented Current Population Survey data set that calculates an improved measure of poverty to reexamine child poverty rates between 1967 and 2012. This measure, the Anchored Supplemental Poverty Measure, is based partially on the US Census Bureau and Bureau of Labor Statistics' new Supplemental Poverty Measure. We focus on 3 age groups of children, those aged 0 to 5, 6 to 11, and 12 to 17 years. Young children have the highest poverty rates, both historically and today. However, among all age groups, long-term poverty trends have been more favorable than official statistics would suggest. This is entirely due to the effect of counting resources from government policies and programs, which have reduced poverty rates substantially for children of all ages. However, despite this progress, considerable disparities in the risk of poverty continue to exist by education level and family structure.
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Changes in Cohabitation After the Birth of the First Child in Chile. POPULATION RESEARCH AND POLICY REVIEW 2015. [DOI: 10.1007/s11113-015-9378-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/22/2022]
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Su JH, Dunifon R, Sassler S. Better for Baby? The Retreat From Mid-Pregnancy Marriage and Implications for Parenting and Child Well-being. Demography 2015; 52:1167-94. [PMID: 26126885 DOI: 10.1007/s13524-015-0410-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
Abstract
Recent decades have seen a significant decline in mid-pregnancy ("shotgun") marriage, particularly among disadvantaged groups, which has contributed to increasing nonmarital birth rates. Despite public and political concern about this shift, the implications for parenting and child well-being are not known. Drawing on a sample of U.S. black and white mothers with nonmarital conceptions from the NLSY79, our study fills this gap. Using propensity score techniques to address concerns about selection bias, we found that mid-pregnancy marriages were associated with slightly better parenting quality relative to remaining single, although effect sizes were small and limited to marriages that remained intact at the time of child assessment. Mid-pregnancy marriages were not associated with improved children's behavior or cognitive ability. These findings suggest that the retreat from mid-pregnancy marriage may contribute to increasing inequality in parenting resources for children.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jessica Houston Su
- Department of Sociology, University at Buffalo, SUNY, 455 Park Hall, Buffalo, NY, 14260, USA,
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Abstract
In recent decades, writes Wendy Manning, cohabitation has become a central part of the family landscape in the United States-so much so that by age 12, 40 percent of American children will have spent at least part of their lives in a cohabiting household. Although many children are born to cohabiting parents, and cohabiting families come in other forms as well, the most common cohabiting arrangement is a biological mother and a male partner. Cohabitation, Manning notes, is associated with several factors that have the potential to reduce children's wellbeing. Cohabiting families are more likely than married families to be poor, and poverty harms children in many ways. Cohabiting parents also tend to have less formal education-a key indicator of both economic and social resources-than married parents do. And cohabiting parent families don't have the same legal protections that married parent families have. Most importantly, cohabitation is often a marker of family instability, and family instability is strongly associated with poorer outcomes for children. Children born to cohabiting parents see their parents break up more often than do children born to married parents. In this way, being born into a cohabiting family sets the stage for later instability, and children who are born to cohabiting parents appear to experience enduring deficits of psychosocial wellbeing. On the other hand, stable cohabiting families with two biological parents seem to offer many of the same health, cognitive, and behavioral benefits that stable married biological parent families provide. Turning to stepfamilies, cohabitation's effects are tied to a child's age. Among young children, living in a cohabiting stepfamily rather than a married stepfamily is associated with more negative indicators of child wellbeing, but this is not so among adolescents. Thus the link between parental cohabitation and child wellbeing depends on both the type of cohabiting parent family and the age of the child.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wendy D Manning
- Department of Sociology, co-director of the National Center for Family and Marriage Research, and director of the Center for Family and Demographic Research at Bowling Green State University
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