Perspectives on the Family: Blended Methods for Studying the Family
Researchers aren't limited to using just one theoretical model to study the family. They can use several, and have a wide assortment of methods and tools at their disposal as they gather data. These include surveys, participant observation, histo...
Love and Loving: Love in Historical Context
Prior to the 20th century, a couple's life together often had much more to do with duty and responsibility than with love.
Race, Ethnicity and Family: Immigrant Families in the United States
Discrimination based on race or ethnicity is an issue that affects and has affected millions of people who have come to the United States to live. When tension and fear are at their highest, as in post 9/11 America, anti-immigrant sentiment often r...
Parents and Children.: Changes in Childcare
In many families today, the job of childcare has been farmed out. While some see this as a source of serious family problems, others contend the impact of outside-the-home childcare has been mostly positive. Still, many experts contend that the ch...
Marriage and Commitment: Why Do People Marry?
Most people today would say they married for love and the desire to spend the rest of their lives with the object of their affection Historically, however, marriage was an economic bargain, a means of establishing property and power and perpetuati...
Families Today and Tomorrow: Aging in America
Since 1900, average life expectancy in the United States has nearly doubled, going from 47 years to about 78 ears for males and 82 years for females. In most cases, the quality of life has increased along with the quantity, but growing older still...
Singlehood...: Demographics and Myths of Single Life
The single population in the United States includes a broad spectrum of people: the never marrieds, those who have been married but are divorced or widowed; and gays and lesbians who are not allowed to marry. Demographically, more women live alone...
Family History: American Family Life in the Early to Mid-20th Century
American family life in the early to mid-20th century was shaped by two major events: the Great Depression and the Second World War. The so-called "traditional" American family of the Post-War years was actually a short-lived anomaly.
Families Today and Tomorrow: Family Diversity and Immigration
American families are growing more racially and ethnically diverse, at least in part because of changing patterns of immigration.
Changing Families: Idealized Perceptions of Family
Idealized perceptions of family are often at odds with reality. For example, the 1950's was a decade many point to nostalgically as the golden age of family. Yet fathers were frequently so consumed with their jobs during that time that they had li...