This paper examines the dynamics of marriage and family patterns and their relationship to living standards of a recent cohort of mothers. It is not obvious that married mothers should perform economically better than mothers in cohabitingrelationships or single mothers living with at least one other adult. But marriage is likely to raise living standards […]
This paper highlights the benefits of using the American Community Survey (ACS) including the ability to analyze data at the state and national levels, as well as explore the relationship between socio-economic characteristics and changing family structure. The following family structure variables are explored in the paper: estimated median age at first marriage, married and […]
This report presents national estimates of the duration of first and second marriages for women 15-44 years of age in 1995. National estimates of the probability of divorce given separation and of the probability of remarriage given divorce are also presented. The life-table estimates are based on a nationally representative sample of women 15-44 years […]
This is a body of research on families that are enduring, cohesive, affectionate, and mutually-appreciative, and in which family members communicate with one another frequently and fruitfully. They are families that raise children who go on to form successful families themselves. They are not necessarily families that are trouble-free. Some have experienced health problems, financial […]
This report examines state efforts to reduce nonmarital births since the passage of PRWORA. In addition to synthesizing existing surveys of related state efforts, the study also includes findings from a series detailed interviews with a sample of nine states. These interviews focused on how states’ efforts to reduce nonmarital births had changed since passage […]
In 1994, Minnesota began testing a major welfare reform initiative that emphasized financial incentives for work, a participation requirement for long-term recipients, and the simplification of rules and procedures for receiving public assistance. MDRC conducted an in-depth evaluation of the Minnesota Family Investment Program’s effectiveness and impact on various populations served. One of the striking […]
This power point presentation illustrates the relationship between church attendance and the stability of African American marriages.
This fact sheet from the National Healthy Marriage Resource Center outlines the trends in children’s living arrangements from 1970-2004.
This is a one page factsheet on marriage rates from 1935-2005.
The percent of men and women who have ever married in the United States increases steadily with age. In other words, a smaller number of 20- to 24-year-olds than 40- to 49-year-olds have ever been married. By the time they reach their 70s, nearly 100% of Americans today have been married at some point in […]