Suicides by young females in rural China contribute substantially to the high rate of suicide and the total number of suicides in China. Given the traditional familial structure that remains largely intact in rural China, this research focuses on whether being married is a risk or protective factor for suicide by young women. I examined 168 rural…

We use data from the Voting and Registration Supplement of the Current Population Survey to explore the effects of family structure on turnout in the 2000 presidential election. Our results indicate that family structure, defined as marital status and the presence of children, has substantial consequences for turnout. Married adults are more…

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…

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…

Leading explanations for ethnic disparities in U.S. women's employment derive largely from research on men. Although recent case studies of newer immigrant groups suggest that these explanations may be less applicable than previously believed, no study to date has assessed this question systematically. Using 2000 Census data, this study tests the…

The literature on the black middle class has focused predominantly on married-couple families with children, reflecting a conception of the black middle class as principally composed of this family type. If that conception is correct, then declining rates of marriage and childrearing would imply a decline in the presence and vitality of the black…

The longstanding assumption that migration of southern blacks to northern cities negatively affected black family structure in the North was examined by comparing the living arrangements of women and children for migrants and nonmigrants in northern cities, 1940-90. Results show that northern urbanites with "southern origins" actually…