In the study of the determination of family size it is natural to focus on variables that describe the position of parents at the time of family formation. In fact, however, we do not have perfect measures of all that is relevant at this time; and for some of the "true" variables that matter, better proxies may be found in variables that describe…

Contents of this volume of studies analyzing the causes of the alarming growth in illegitimacy, families lacking a father, and welfare caseloads, include the following studies: "The Family, Poverty, and Welfare Programs: An Introductory Essay on Problems of Analysis and Policy," Robert I. Lerman; "The Impact of Welfare Payment…

This study is a follow-up of the work by Morris Rosenberg who found that younger-minority boys tend to have high self-esteem, but a relatively low achievement orientation and low grades in school. Sampling a total 898 high school senior boys, this study found that younger minority boys do have lower grades and lower occupational and educational…

As federal and state officials consider the reauthorization of the block grants at the center of the 1996 federal welfare reform law, it is critical that they use findings from research regarding the impact of welfare reform to guide their decisions. This special report examines the impact of welfare reform on children and youth, drawing on…

This paper takes advantage of a massive school construction program that took place in Indonesia between 1973 and 1978 to estimate the effect of education on fertility and child mortality. Time and region varying exposure to the school construction program generates instrumental variables for the average education in the household, and the…

As part of its 1996 welfare reform bill, the U.S. Congress enacted a $50 million per year program to fund abstinence education. The welfare reform law addresses the problem of births to single adolescents by enforcing child support payments, giving states financial incentives to reduce nonmarital births, and creating the abstinence education…

There is an extensive theoretical literature that postulates a trade off between child quantity and quality within a family. However, there is little causal evidence that speaks to this theory. Using a rich dataset on the entire population of Norway over an extended period of time, we examine the effects of family size and birth order on the…

It looks as if the U.S. might be in for a small but significant (for schools) rise in birth rates. (Author)

Argues that advocacy for improved programs and services to strengthen family life in the United States is inconsistent with prevailing cultural attitudes which have turned away from the valuation of the traditional nuclear family. (BE)

A study of very low birth weight babies with (n=89) and without (n=71) bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD) and term controls was conducted at age 8. The BPD group demonstrated reduced articulation, receptive language skills, performance IQ, and gross and fine motor skills, and almost half were enrolled in speech-language therapy. (Contains…

Analyzed data from National Longitudinal Survey of Youth to determine whether impact of adolescent childbearing on women's subsequent contact with welfare system differed for Black women and White women (n=1,894). Results supported hypothesized patterns of association between early birth, educational attainment, years spent as single parent, years…

The Infant Health and Development Program was an eight-site randomized controlled trial of comprehensive early intervention for low birthweight, premature infants from birth to age three. Higher mental development and IQ were associated with high levels of intervention participation at 24 and 36 (but not 12) months. A dose-response relation…

To understand the African-American family, the African-American poor and middle class must be investigated. Extra costs mean that it is much harder for African Americans to reach the middle class. Ways to improve the economic status of African-American families and to increase the middle class are discussed. (SLD)

Examined predictors of development in very low birth weight infants from diverse backgrounds. Found that low income and greater frequency of medical problems predicted developmental risk on the Bayley Scales. In two-parent households, paternal education predicted developmental scores. Several individual biomedical factors predicted…

Regression analysis and principal components analysis, which can be used to create perinatal risk profiles of neighborhoods within cities, were compared. Using census tract level low birthweight as the outcome variable, both methods identified factors identifying neighborhoods at risk. Both methods can be used to identify community characteristics…