Family Policies and Children's School Achievement in Single‐ Versus Two‐Parent Families

We investigate the gap in math and science achievement of third‐ and fourth‐graders who live with a single parent versus those who live with two parents in 11 countries. The United States and New Zealand rank last among the countries we compare in terms of the equality of achievement between children from single‐parent families and those from two‐parent homes. Following a multilevel analysis, we find single parenthood to be less detrimental when family policies equalize resources between single‐ and two‐parent families. In addition, the single‐ and two‐parent achievement gap is greater in countries where single‐parent families are more prevalent. We conclude that national family policies can offset the negative academic outcomes of single parenthood.     

Educational Achievement of Children From Single‐Mother and Single‐Father Families: The Case of Japan

This article examines the relationships between single parenthood and student achievement in Japan. The study uses sixth‐grade data from the 2013 National Assessment of Academic Ability and the Detailed Survey, which was the first nationally representative parental survey collected through schools in Japan. The results indicate that children of single‐mother and single‐father families perform academically lower than children of two‐parent families. For children living in single‐mother families, more than 50% of the educational disadvantage was explained by a lack of economic resources. For children living in single‐father families, the educational disadvantage was explained more by a lack of parenting resources, measured by discussions at home, supervision at home, and involvement in school, than economic resources. These findings suggest that the gendered labor force and division of labor among spouses in Japanese society may deprive parents of the ability to buffer the negative relationship between single parenthood and children's educational achievement.     

Immigration and the Family Circumstances of Mexican‐Origin Children: A Binational Longitudinal Analysis

Using data from the birth cohort of the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study (n = 1,200) and the Mexican Family Life Survey (n = 1,013), this study investigated the living arrangements of Mexican‐origin preschool children. The analysis examined children's family circumstances in both sending and receiving countries, used longitudinal data to capture family transitions, and considered the intersection between nuclear and extended family structures. Between ages 0–1 and 4–5, Mexican children of immigrants experienced significantly more family instability than children in Mexico. They were more likely to transition from 2‐parent to single‐parent families and from extended family households to simple households. There were fewer differences between U.S. children with immigrant versus native parents, but the higher level of single parenthood among children of natives at ages 0–1 and the greater share making transitions from a 2‐parent to a single‐parent family suggest ongoing erosion of children's family support across generations in the United States.     

Parent‐to‐Child Aggression Among Asian American Parents: Culture,Context, and Vulnerability

We examined correlates of lifetime parent‐to‐child aggression in a representative sample of 1,293 Asian American parents. Correlates examined included nativity, indicators of acculturation, socioeconomic status, family climate, and stressors associated with minority status. Results revealed that Asian Americans of Chinese descent and those who immigrated as youth were more likely to report minor parental aggression; ethnicity and nativity were not associated with severe aggression. Indices of acculturation did not predict risk, but minority status stressors (perceived discrimination, low social standing) predicted risk of both minor and severe aggression. Affective climate differed markedly in families with minor versus severe aggression. Parental aggression in Asian American families may not be cultural per se, but stress associated with immigrant family context may heighten vulnerability.     

Single Parenthood,Parental Involvement and Students’ Educational Outcomes in Hong Kong

Analyzing data from the Programme for International Student Assessment Hong Kong 2009 and 2012 (n = 7,669), we examined the differences in socioeconomic characteristics of fathers and mothers and levels of parental involvement between two-parent, single-mother, and single-father families in Hong Kong. We found that parents from single-mother and single-father families fare differently in terms of sociodemographic background and parental involvement at home. We also investigated the differences in students’ academic performance among these families. Past studies failed to find any significant effect of single parenthood on students’ academic performance in Hong Kong. We found negative effects of single fatherhood, but not single motherhood, on educational outcomes. The disadvantages of single fatherhood are partially explained by the poorer sociodemographic background and lower levels of parental involvement.     

Life Satisfaction Among Children in Different Family Structures: A Comparative Study of 36 Western Societies

This paper examines differences in life satisfaction among children in different family structures in 36 western, industrialised countries (n = 184 496). Children living with both biological parents reported higher levels of life satisfaction than children living with a single parent or parent–step‐parent. Children in joint physical custody reported significantly higher levels of life satisfaction than their counterparts in other types of non‐intact families. Controlling perceived family affluence, the difference between joint physical custody families and single mother or mother–stepfather families became non‐significant. Difficulties in communicating with parents were strongly associated with less life satisfaction but did not mediate the relation between family structure and life satisfaction. Children in the Nordic countries characterised by strong welfare systems reported significantly higher levels of life satisfaction in all living arrangements except in single father households. Differences in economic inequality between countries moderated the association between certain family structures, perceived family affluence and life satisfaction.     

Single Custodial Fathers' Involvement and Parenting: Implications for Outcomes in Emerging Adulthood

Using a sample of 3,977 youths from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth (NLSY97), this study examines the unique characteristics of single‐custodial‐father families with adolescents and the effects of single fathers' involvement and parenting on outcomes in emerging adulthood. Findings suggest that single‐custodial‐father families are distinct from single‐mother and 2‐biological‐parent families in terms of sociodemographic characteristics, parenting styles, and involvement. Parenting styles and involvement mediate the differences between single‐father families and 2‐parent families in terms of high school completion and disconnectedness and partially mediate differences for single‐custodial‐father families with a partner. Family and sociodemographic characteristics are also associated with being disconnected for adolescents residing with a cohabiting custodial father.     

Same‐Sex Parent Families and Children's Academic Achievement

Children in traditional families (i.e., married, 2 biological parents) tend to do better than their peers in nontraditional families. An exception to this pattern appears to be children from same‐sex parent families. Children with lesbian mothers or gay fathers do not exhibit the poorer outcomes typically associated with nontraditional families. Studies of same‐sex parent families, however, have relied on a static conceptualization of the family and discounted the importance of the timing and number of family transitions for understanding children's outcomes. To examine whether same‐sex parent families represent an exception among nontraditional families, the author used data from the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study—Kindergarten cohort (N = 19,043) to create a dynamic indicator of children's family structure and tested its association with math assessment scores. The results indicated that children in same‐sex parent families scored lower than their peers in married, 2‐biological parent households, but the difference was nonsignificant net of family transitions.     

Perceived Parental Control Processes,Parent–Child Relational Qualities,and Adolescent Psychological Well-Being in Intact and Nonintact Families: Longitudinal Findings in the Chinese Culture

ABSTRACT

Over 3 consecutive years, Chinese adolescents from intact families (n?=?2,140) and nonintact families (n?=?234) responded to instruments assessing their perceived parental behavioral control (parental knowledge, expectation, monitoring, discipline, and demandingness, as well as parental control based on indigenous Chinese concepts), parental psychological control, parent–child relational qualities (satisfaction with parental control, child's readiness to communicate with the parents, and perceived mutual trust between parents and their children), and psychological well-being. Perceived parental behavioral control processes, parent–child relational qualities, and psychological well-being were poorer in nonintact families relative to intact families over time. In contrast, maternal psychological control was higher in nonintact families over time than in intact families over time. Adolescents from stable and disruptive nonintact families without remarriage generally performed poorer than did adolescents from nonintact families with remarriage on the various indicators of family processes and adolescent psychological well-being.     

Risk and Resiliency Factors Among Adolescents Who Experience Marital Transitions

Using a resiliency framework, we examined familial and extrafamilial factors associated with adolescent well‐being in intact, blended, and divorced single‐parent families. Hierarchical regression analyses were conducted using a large sample of 7th‐, 9th‐, and 11th‐grade adolescents (N= 2,011) to test the moderating effect of peer support, school attachment, and neighbor support when parental support and monitoring were low. Significant two‐ and three‐way interactions were probed. Findings indicate that divorced and blended families have some of the same forms of resiliency as intact families. For adolescents in a divorced single‐parent family, peer support moderated the effect of low parental support on internalizing symptoms. We discuss the merits of examining divorce from a resiliency perspective.     

Psychological Implications of Motherhood and Fatherhood in Midlife: Evidence From Sibling Models

Using data from 4,744 full, twin, half‐, adopted, and stepsiblings in the Wisconsin Longitudinal Study, I examine psychological consequences of motherhood and fatherhood in midlife. My analysis includes between‐family models that compare individuals across families and within‐family models comparing siblings from the same family to account for unobserved genetic and environmental endowments that may confound the relationship between parenthood and mental health. Further, I examine whether the psychological effect of parenthood varies among different types of sibling dyads. The findings reveal that parenthood has similar psychological implications for middle‐aged mothers and fathers. Main differences arise from specific configurations of the parental role. The association between parenthood and mental health partly reflects genetic influences but not shared early‐life environment.     

A Weak Embrace: Popular and Scholarly Depictions of Single‐Parent Families, 1900 – 1998

The growth of single‐parent families constitutes one of the most dramatic and most studied social changes of the 20th century. Evolving attitudes toward these families have received less attention. This paper explores depictions of these families in representative samples of popular magazine (N = 474) and social science journal (N = 202) articles. Critical depictions of divorce plummeted between 1900 and 1998, a trend stemming not from any increase in favorable depictions but from the virtual disappearance of normative debate. Such de facto acceptance did not extend to nonmarital childbearing, however, depictions of which were almost as likely to be critical at the century’s end as at its beginning. These trends illustrate Americans’ ambivalent embrace of single‐parent families as a reality but not an ideal.     

Sex Differences in Parenting Behaviors in Single‐Mother and Single‐Father Households

Research on family structure has led some to claim that sex‐based parenting differences exist. But if such differences exist in single‐parent families, the absence of a second parent rather than specific sex‐typed parenting might explain them. We examine differences in mothering and fathering behavior in single‐parent households, where number of parents is held constant, and we describe individualist and structuralist perspectives for potential sex‐based parenting behaviors. We compare 3,202 single mothers and 307 single fathers in the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study (Kindergarten Cohort). Results suggest that, although there are small differences in the parenting behaviors of single mothers and single fathers, differences are sensitive to demographic disparities and do not translate to academic deficits for children in either family type.     

The Emergence of a Social Problem: Single‐Parent Families in U.S. Popular Magazines and Social Science Journals, 1900–1998*

Abundant research investigates the content of public discourse about social problems. Far less is known about the quantity of social problems discourse. This article employs original data to address this gap by examining the emergence of single‐parent families as a social problem within U.S. popular magazines and social science journals. I trace the growth of discourse about single‐parent families in magazines indexed by the Reader's Guide to Periodical Literature (N= 3050) and social science journals indexed by JSTOR (N= 1376) between 1900 and 1998 and explore factors associated with this growth. The results indicate that contemporary issues functioned as rival social problems and depressed single‐parent family discourse within magazines but not within journals. Increases in the prevalence of single‐parent families were associated with increases in related discourse in both arenas, but discourse increased earlier in journals. Growing popular concern about single‐parent family formation in the 1960s was associated with a reduction in the quantity of single‐parent family discourse within journals but not within magazines.     

Small Samples,Big Challenges: Studying Atypical Family Forms

We discuss the challenges of small‐subsample sizes that family scholars often encounter when studying nontraditional or less common family types. We begin by identifying the general difficulties of using existing data in this line of research and then discuss potential solutions that may help researchers to avoid these problems. Using data from the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, we use the example of monoracial White, monoracial Asian, and Asian/White interracial families to illustrate these problems and available, albeit imperfect, solutions.     

Becoming a Parent and Relationship Satisfaction: A Longitudinal Dyadic Perspective

This study investigated the extent to which women's and men's relationship satisfaction within couples is similarly or differently affected by becoming a parent and the extent to which changes in work hours and hours spent on household labor affect a person's own and his or her spouse's relationship satisfaction across the transition to parenthood. The authors conducted longitudinal dyadic analyses, based on 12 waves of the British Household Panel Study (BHPS). They selected 689 couples who remained together during the period of observation and who were employed, childless, and living with their partner (of which 28% married) at the first moment of observation. The results revealed that relationship satisfaction of both members in a couple changed in tandem. Although work hours and household labor had some effect on people's own and their spouse's relationship satisfaction, these factors did not account for the U‐shaped relationship satisfaction pattern associated with the transition to parenthood.     

Interparental Relations,Maternal Employment,and Fathering in Mexican American Families

This study examined independent and interactive relations between the interparental relationship and maternal employment in predicting fathering within low‐income, Mexican American two‐parent families (N = 115). Interparental conflict was negatively related to quality fathering, and these relations were noted only for single‐earner families. The parenting alliance was positively related to quality fathering irrespective of maternal employment. Fathering was associated with lower levels of child depression and conduct problems. Results suggest that bolstering quality fathering is a useful avenue for improving child well‐being and that strengthening the interparental relationship can support quality fathering and child mental health within Mexican American families.     

Parent–Child Communicational Characteristics: A Comparison Study between Subjects from Post-Divorce and Intact Nuclear Families

ABSTRACT

The occurrence of divorce seems to have impact on parent–child communication, with subsequent implications on the children well-being and development. The present study aims to analyze the influence that divorce has on parent–child communication comparing 102 participants from post-divorced families and 100 participants from intact nuclear families. Measures consisted of a sociodemographic questionnaire and Perception Scale of Parenting Communication. Despite literature indicators, the main findings reveal the absence of significant statistical differences between both family structures, concerning to parent–child communication. Overall, it was registered some statistically significant differences concerning to specific divorce variables. These findings demystifying the idea that post-divorce families establish less positive communication patterns when compared with intact nuclear families.     

What Narrows the Stepgap? Closeness Between Parents and Adult (Step)Children in Germany

Using data from the German Family Panel (pairfam) based on 11,746 intergenerational family relationships, the present study examined differences in parental closeness across relations with multiple, coresidential, and non‐coresidential adolescent and adult children. Replicating previous research in a multilevel analysis across families, the authors found a strong positive effect of biological descent on closeness in comparison to adoptive and steprelations; this parental favoritism toward biological offspring was partly explained by selection via parental resources and attitudes. Supplemental within‐parent fixed effect analyses suggested that the relative disadvantage of stepchildren was offset by longer duration of the stepparent–stepchild relationship, lower household income, fewer children in the household, and high parental affirmation of familism.