The Timing of Cohabitation and Engagement: Impact on First and Second Marriages

Using a multistate sample of marriages that took place in the 1990s, this study examined associations between premarital cohabitation history and marital quality in first (N = 437) and second marriages (N = 200) and marital instability in first marriages (intact N = 521, divorced N = 124). For first marriages, cohabiting with the spouse without first being engaged or married was associated with more negative interaction, higher self‐reported divorce proneness, and a greater probability of divorce compared to cohabiting after engagement or marriage (with patterns in the same direction for marital positivity). In contrast, there was a general risk associated with premarital cohabitation for second marriages on self‐reported indices of marital quality, with or without engagement when cohabitation began.     

Paths to Intimate Relationship Quality From Parent–Adolescent Relations and Mental Health

Using a developmental systems perspective and public‐use longitudinal data from participants currently in a romantic relationship at Wave 4 of the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health (n = 2,970), the current study explored direct and indirect paths from parent–adolescent relationship quality to young adult intimate relationship quality. Structural equation modeling tested whether mental health (depressive symptoms and self‐esteem) in the transition to adulthood mediated the association between parent–adolescent relations and young adult intimate relations. The results indicated that higher quality parent–adolescent relations predicted higher self‐esteem and lower depressive symptoms during the transition to adulthood as well as higher young adult intimate relationship quality, controlling for adolescent mental health and parent–young adult relationship quality. Higher self‐esteem during the transition to adulthood was associated with greater intimate relationship quality, whereas greater depressive symptomatology predicted reduced intimate relationship quality. One significant indirect path emerged: parent–adolescent relationship quality → self‐esteem → intimate relationship quality.     

The History and Timing of Depression Onset as Predictors of Young Adult Self‐Esteem

Depression often emerges early in the lifecourse and is consistently shown to be associated with poor self‐esteem. The 3 main objectives of the current study are to (1) evaluate the association between a history major depression and self‐esteem in young adulthood, (2) assess the relationship between timing of depression onset and young adult self‐esteem, and (3) help rule out the alternative interpretation that the relationship between major depression and self‐esteem is due to state dependence bias stemming from recent depressive symptoms and stressful life events. To address these objectives we use data from a 2‐wave panel study based on a community sample of young adults in Miami‐Dade County, Florida (n=1,197). Results indicated that a history of major depression during sensitive periods of social development is associated with negative changes in self‐esteem over a 2‐year period during the transition to young adulthood. Among those with a history of depression, earlier onset was more problematic than later onset for young adult self‐esteem, although the difference disappeared once the level of self‐esteem 2 years prior was controlled. The linkages between the history and timing of depression onset with self‐esteem were observed net of recent depressive symptoms and stressful life events and are thus robust to an alternative interpretation of state dependence. The findings support the argument that major depression, especially if it develops earlier during child‐adolescent development, has negative consequences for one's self‐esteem.     

Of Sex and Romance: Late Adolescent Relationships and Young Adult Union Formation

To better understand the social factors that influence the diverse pathways to family formation young adults experience today, this research investigates the association between opposite‐gender relationships during late adolescence and union formation in early adulthood. Using data from the first and third waves of the Add Health (n= 4,911), we show that, for both men and women, there is continuity between adolescent and adult relationship experiences. Those involved in adolescent romantic relationships at the end of high school are more likely to marry and to cohabit in early adulthood. Moreover, involvement in a nonromantic sexual relationship is positively associated with cohabitation, but not marriage. We conclude that the precursors to union formation patterns in adulthood are observable in adolescence.     

Adolescent Well‐Being in Cohabiting,Married, and Single‐Parent Families

Cohabitation is a family form that increasingly includes children. We use the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health to assess the well‐being of adolescents in cohabiting parent stepfamilies (N= 13,231). Teens living with cohabiting stepparents often fare worse than teens living with two biological married parents. Adolescents living in cohabiting stepfamilies experience greater disadvantage than teens living in married stepfamilies. Most of these differences, however, are explained by socioeconomic circumstances. Teenagers living with single unmarried mothers are similar to teens living with cohabiting stepparents; exceptions include greater delinquency and lower grade point averages experienced by teens living with cohabiting stepparents. Yet mother's marital history explains these differences. Our results contribute to our understanding of cohabitation and debates about the importance of marriage for children.     

A Population‐Based Study of Alcohol Use in Same‐Sex and Different‐Sex Unions

The present study advances research on union status and health by providing a first look at alcohol use differentials among different‐sex and same‐sex married and cohabiting individuals using nationally representative population‐based data (National Health Interview Surveys 1997–2011, N = 181,581). The results showed that both same‐sex and different‐sex married groups reported lower alcohol use than both same‐sex and different‐sex cohabiting groups. The results further revealed that same‐sex and different‐sex married individuals reported similar levels of alcohol use, whereas same‐sex and different‐sex cohabiting individuals reported similar levels of alcohol use. Drawing on marital advantage and minority stress approaches, the findings suggest that it is cohabitation status—not same‐sex status—that is associated with elevated alcohol rates.     

The Stability of Same‐Sex Cohabitation,Different‐Sex Cohabitation,and Marriage

This study contributes to the emerging demographic literature on same‐sex couples by comparing the level and correlates of union stability among 4 types of couples: (a) male same‐sex cohabitation, (b) female same‐sex cohabitation, (c) different‐sex cohabitation, and (d) different‐sex marriage. The author analyzed data from 2 British birth cohort studies: the National Child Development Study (N = 11,469) and the 1970 British Cohort Study (N = 11,924). These data contain retrospective histories of same‐sex and different‐sex unions throughout young adulthood (age 16–34) from 1974 through 2004. Event‐history analyses showed that same‐sex cohabitations have higher rates of dissolution than do different‐sex cohabiting and marital unions. Among same‐sex couples, male couples had slightly higher dissolution rates than did female couples. In addition, same‐sex couples from the 1958 and 1970 birth cohorts had similar levels of union stability. The demographic correlates of union stability are generally similar for same‐sex and different‐sex unions.     

Cohabitation,Relationship Quality,and Desistance From Crime

Although the empirical links between marriage and desistance are well established, very little is known about the degree to which cohabitation is associated with changes in criminal behavior. This is a significant oversight given that, among some segments of the population, cohabitation has become more common than marriage. In this article, the author investigated the links between cohabitation and desistance from crime. In doing so, particular attention was paid to the possibility that similarities between the apparent effects of marriage and cohabitation are obscured by variations in relationship quality and the increasing tendency for cohabitation to precede marriage. Analyses based on the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1997 (N = 3,232) indicate that cohabitation is associated with reductions in the rate of property and drug offending, but not the termination of violent, property, or drug offending. By contrast, marriage is consistently associated with large reductions in the rate of offending across the 3 crime categories as well as the abandonment of those crimes. These results provide greater insight into the links between adult family relationships, such as cohabitation and marriage, and desistance from crime.     

The Reproductive Context of Cohabitation in the United States: Recent Change and Variation in Contraceptive Use

Drawing on data from 2 waves of the National Survey of Family Growth (N = 11,065), the current research addressed 2 overarching questions about the reproductive context of cohabitation in the United States. First, did patterns of contraceptive use among cohabitors change during the last 2 decades of the 20th century? Second, did patterns of contraceptive use among cohabiting women tend to vary by education or race/ethnicity? Results point to a growing resemblance between never‐married cohabiting women and those in first marriages in the likelihood of using a “very effective” contraceptive method and suggest that cohabitation is most “marriage like” with respect to reproductive behavior among the least educated.     

How do cohabiting couples with children spend their money?

Increasing rates of cohabitation in the United States raise important questions about how cohabitation fits in with the definition of family. Answers to this question depend in part upon the extent to which cohabitors’ behavior differs from that of other family types. Using data from the Consumer Expenditure Survey, we compare the expenditure patterns of cohabiting‐parent (n = 1,804), married‐parent (n = 33,159), divorced single‐parent (n = 7,641), and never‐married single‐parent (n = 2,893) families. We find that cohabiting‐parent families, compared to married‐parent families, spend a greater amount on 2 adult goods (alcohol and tobacco) and a smaller amount on education. Cohabiting‐parent families also differ in their spending patterns from divorced single‐parent families and from never‐married single‐parent families. Overall, our results show that cohabiting‐parent families allocate their budgets differently than do other families.     

Indicators of Adolescent Depression and Relationship Progression in Emerging Adulthood

Adolescent depression may be associated with future relationship problems that have long‐term consequences given the developmental importance and health benefits of forming committed unions in emerging adulthood. The authors examined associations between emotional and behavioral indicators of adolescent depression (depressive symptoms, alcohol problems, and suicidal ideation) and romantic relationship and union formation and dissolution in emerging adulthood (n = 14,146) using the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health. Adolescent alcohol problems were associated with more romantic relationships in emerging adulthood. Emerging adults with depressive symptoms or alcohol problems in adolescence were significantly more likely to enter into a cohabiting union, and those with adolescent alcohol problems were less likely to marry. Cohabiting emerging adults with a history of adolescent depressive symptoms were less likely to marry, whereas suicidal ideation was associated with a decreased likelihood of cohabitation dissolution. Implications for future research are discussed.     

Cyclical Cohabitation Among Unmarried Parents in Fragile Families

Building on past research suggesting that cohabitation is an ambiguous family form, the authors examined an understudied residential pattern among unmarried parents: cyclical cohabitation, in which parents have multiple cohabitation spells with each other. Using 9 years of panel data from the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing Study (N = 2,084), they found that 10% of all parents with nonmarital births and nearly a quarter of those living together when the child is 9 years old are cyclical cohabitors. Cyclically cohabiting mothers reported more material hardships than mothers in most other relationship patterns but also reported more father involvement with children. On all measures of child well‐being except grade retention, children of cyclically cohabiting parents fared no worse than children of stably cohabiting biological parents and did not differ significantly from any other group.     

The Continuation of Intimate Partner Violence From Adolescence to Young Adulthood

Little attention has been paid to whether violence in adolescent romantic relationships is associated with relationship violence later in young adulthood. This study examined the continuation of intimate partner violence (IPV) from adolescence to young adulthood. Using data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health, results from negative binomial models and propensity score models showed that being victimized by relationship partners in adolescence was significantly associated with both perpetration and victimization in romantic relationships in young adulthood. Women reported higher levels of perpetration and lower levels of victimization than men did. Those who were living together (married or cohabiting) reported higher levels of victimization and perpetration than those who were dating. Further, such associations existed beyond the effects of parent–child violence and general aggression tendencies, suggesting the continuation of relationship‐specific violence. Finally, these patterns persisted after controlling for participants' age, race and ethnicity, parental education, and family structure.     

An Evaluation of Mechanisms of Change in Multisystemic Therapy for Juvenile Justice‐Involved Youths A Decade Following Treatment

Although researchers have identified the more immediate mechanisms of change in family‐based treatments for juvenile justice‐involved youths, it is not known whether these same mechanisms continue to prevent criminal offending into adulthood. The present study evaluated whether caregiver‐directed improvements in family relations, youth prosocial peer relations, and youth academic performance during multisystemic therapy (MST) for serious and violent juvenile offenders had an impact on young adult involvement in criminal activity and sentencing 10.2 years following treatment. The results showed that improvements in family relations were associated with reduced odds of criminal outcomes a decade later for former MST participants. Furthermore, improvements in youth prosocial peer relations and academic performance were also related to lower odds of long‐term criminal activity. These results are consistent with the underlying theory of change in family‐based treatments and demonstrate that caregivers are critical to achieving and sustaining decreased antisocial behavior for youths with serious and violent criminal histories.     

Life Course Heterogeneity in the Transition from Adolescence to Adulthood Among Adolescent Mothers

Longitudinal data were used to examine pathways taken by 227 adolescent mothers during the transition from adolescence into adulthood. Latent profile analysis identified three sub‐groups of adolescent mothers from 6 months to 6 years postpartum: a problem‐prone profile (15%), a psychologically vulnerable profile (42%), and a normative profile (43%). Group membership was related to long‐term adult outcomes (adult status markers, health‐risk and deviant behaviors, substance use, mental health, and intimate relationships) when respondents were nearing age 30. The psychologically vulnerable group reported greater health and mental health problems, relational problems, and substance use than the normative profile group. Only the problem‐prone profile group, taken together, reported serious problems in all domains of adult outcomes examined including financial, relational, behavioral, and health and mental health problems. Results confirm the existence of different pathways through adolescent parenthood that are associated with adult functioning 12 years postpartum.     

Traumatic Experiences in Childhood and Adult Substance Use in a Nonclinical Sample: The Mediating Role of Arousal/Reactivity

The vast majority of adults in the United States experience at least one traumatic event during childhood. According to the self‐medication hypothesis of substance use disorders, adult survivors of childhood trauma may cope with trauma‐related symptoms via alcohol or drug use. The purpose of this study is to identify through which specific PTSD symptom clusters childhood trauma exposure are associated with adult substance use. Participants of this study (N = 627) were not recruited based on substance use or traumatic exposure. Results of this study demonstrate that arousal/reactivity partially mediates the association between childhood trauma and current substance use. Implications for treatment include recommendations for trauma‐informed approaches that aim to decrease arousal/reactivity and subsequently substance use.     

The Noncustodial Father–Child Relationship From Adolescence Into Young Adulthood

The relationship between adult children aged 18 – 24 and noncustodial fathers was explored with longitudinal data from the National Survey of Families and Households (n = 359). Noncustodial fathers’ commitment to their adolescent children (contact, involvement in childrearing decisions) was strongly associated with father‐child relations in early adulthood. Father–adult child relations were weaker when children were born to an unmarried mother and when children had no memory of living with the father. Contrary to expectations, both mothers’ and fathers’ remarriage was associated with stronger father‐child relationships in early adulthood. The results show continuity in the father‐child relationship from adolescence into young adulthood and suggest that the life course transitions of family members influence the father‐child bond.     

Family Structure and Child Well‐Being: The Significance of Parental Cohabitation

Data from the 1999 National Survey of America's Families (N = 35,938) were used to examine the relationship between family structure and child well‐being. I extended prior research by including children in two‐biological‐parent cohabiting families, as well as cohabiting stepfamilies, in an investigation of the roles of economic and parental resources on behavioral and emotional problems and school engagement. Children living in two‐biological‐parent cohabiting families experience worse outcomes, on average, than those residing with two biological married parents, although among children ages 6–11, economic and parental resources attenuate these differences. Among adolescents ages 12–17, parental cohabitation is negatively associated with well‐being, regardless of the levels of these resources. Child well‐being does not significantly differ among those in cohabiting versus married stepfamilies, two‐biological‐parent cohabiting families versus cohabiting stepfamilies, or either type of cohabiting family versus single‐mother families.     

Cohabitation and U.S. Adult Mortality: An Examination by Gender and Race

This study is the first to explore the relationship between cohabitation and U.S. adult mortality using a nationally representative sample. Using data from the National Health Interview Survey‐Longitudinal Mortality Follow‐up files 1997–2004 (N = 193,851), the authors found that divorced, widowed, and never‐married White men had higher mortality rates than cohabiting White men, and never‐married Black men had higher mortality rates than cohabiting Black men. In contrast, the mortality rates of nonmarried White and Black women were not different from those of their cohabiting counterparts. The results also revealed that mortality rates of married White men and women were lower than their cohabiting counterparts and that these mortality differences tended to decrease with age. The authors found no significant mortality differences when they compared married Black men or women to their cohabiting counterparts. The identified mortality differences were partially—but not fully—explained by income, psychological, or health behavior differences across groups.