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The Marriage Index: A Proposal to Establish Leading Marriage Indicators
Report, September 2008
What helps us the most to thrive, as individuals and as a society? Money or marriage? Assets or relationships? Here’s what we know: A large body of research suggests that the status of our marriages influences our well-being at least as much as the status of our finances. But consider this puzzle. Why do we so carefully measure and widely publicize our leading economic indicators, and do everything we can to improve them, while rarely bothering to measure our leading marriage indicators, or try to do anything as a society to improve them? How odd. This situation should change. And now it can change. This report presents a set of Leading Marriage Indicators—fundamental, well-chosen measurements that accurately reveal the direction and overall health of marriage as a U.S. social institution carefully developed by a bipartisan group of scholars and leaders.
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Do Fathers Matter Uniquely for Adolescent Well-Being?
Research Brief No. 14, October 2008
Exlpored in this research brief: the importance of fathers and mothers for a nationally representative sample of teenagers, specifically examining whether a father’s human capital, social capital, and role modeling may uniquely influence his adolescent’s self-identity and behavior.
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The American Family, 1988–2028: Looking Back and Looking Forward
Research Brief No. 13, August 2008
In 1988, the American family appeared to be in serious trouble—at least according to the statistics. Beginning in the late 1960s and early 1970s, the marriage rate plummeted and the divorce rate and unwed birth percentage skyrocketed.
Divorce, Dads, and the Well-Being of Children: Answering Common Research Questions
Research Brief No. 12, July 2008
Divorce is a powerful force in contemporary American family life. Current estimates suggest that between 43 and 50 percent of first-time marriages will end in divorce. Consequently, more than one million U.S. children experience parental divorce each year.
Is Religion an Answer? Marriage, Fatherhood, and the Male Problematic
Research Brief No. 11, June 2008
One of the most important consequences of the family revolution of the last half-century—a revolution marked by dramatic increases in divorce, nonmarital childbearing, and cohabitation—is that ever larger numbers of men are becoming disconnected from family life.
The Benefits of Marriage for African American Men
Research Brief No. 10, May 2008
Currently, many policymakers and civic leaders are interested in developing strategies to improve the well-being of African American men, and to close the achievement gap between black men and other groups. This brief surveys the research on the effects of family structure on African American men and finds overwhelming evidence that getting and staying married has a significant beneficial effect on black men’s well-being.
The Taxpayer Costs of Divorce: First-Ever Estimates for the Nation and for All Fifty States
Report, April 2008
This study provides the first rigorous estimate of the costs to U.S. taxpayers of high rates of divorce and unmarried childbearing both at the national and state levels.
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For A New Revisionism: Scholarship on the Black Family since the Moynihan Report
Research Brief No. 9, March 2008
The decline of marriage among African Americans has been one of the most dramatic social changes in recent American history. Since 1940, rates of divorce and nonmarriage have soared among Black adults, and, as a result, the percentage of Black children born to unmarried mothers has risen from 17 percent to 70 percent.
The Shift and the Denial: Scholarly Attitudes toward Family Change, 1977-2002
Brief 8, February 2008
Many Americans have been questioning the importance of marriage, and the rift among scholars has allowed both progressives and traditionalists to claim that the experts are on their side. Over the past 20 years, have leading scholars reached a consensus on marriage?
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Protectors or Perpetrators? Fathers, Mothers, and Child Abuse and Neglect
Brief 7, January 2008
This research brief explores what role fathers play in perpetrating or protecting their children from child neglect and abuse, and it explores the social, emotional, and economic factors associated with paternal abuse and neglect.
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Hardwired to Connect: The New Scientific Case for Authoritative Communities
DVD, 2007
An informational DVD summarizing the findings of the Institute’s report, “Hardwired to Connect.” Copies are free while supplies last.
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Baby Fathers and American Family Formation
Essay, Future of the Black Family Series, August 2007
How do we help low-income, never-married parents stay together and avoid breaking up? Read how the “daddy moment” offers a potentially rich opportunity for researchers, policy makers, and other social and civic leaders to help the couple deal with tensions and issues arising from their shared parenting roles and possibly imagine marriage to one another.
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Responding to the Black Marriage Crisis: A New Vision for Change
Brief 6, Future of the Black Family Series, May 2007
This research brief lays out a positive vision and tangible steps that will help us create a new, healthy Black marriage culture in America.
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Religion, Race, and Relationships in Urban America
Brief 5, Future of the Black Family Series, May 2007
This brief is the first published research on the link between religiosity and relationship quality among unmarried couples in fragile families.
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Marriage and Mental Health in Adults and Children
Brief 4, February 2007
Research strongly supports the idea that marriage matters for women�s, men�s, and children�s mental health.
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The Other Marriage Penalty: A New Proposal to Eliminate the Marriage Penalty for Low-Income Americans
Brief 3, Future of the Black Family Series, November 2006
Our welfare system frequently cuts benefits to low-income couples that decide to marry. Read more about the problem and a new proposal to fix it.
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Marriage and the Well-Being of African American Boys
Brief 2, Future of the Black Family Series, November 2006
African American boys tend to receive more support and have better outcomes–including greater self-esteem and reduced likelihood of delinquency–when they live with married parents.
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The Revolution in Parenthood: The Emerging Global Clash Between Adult Rights and Children’s Needs
Report, September 2006
Around the world, the two-person, mother-father model of parenthood is being fundamentally challenged. Read how.
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| Download Report (French) Marriage and the Law: A Statement of Principles
Report, September 2006
100 family and legal scholars come together to critique current family law practices, affirm seven great truths about marriage and the law, and to offer three general insights that can be applied to a legal theory that is more respectful toward and supportive of marriage as a social institution.
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| Order ReportBetween Two Worlds: The Spiritual Lives of Children of Divorce
DVD, 2007
A 30 minute documentary narrated by author Elizabeth Marquardt and based on her book, Between Two Worlds: The Inner Lives of Children of Divorce. It features interviews with seven grown children of divorce talking about faith, family of origin, and marriage hopes and fears. Read more
What is America’s Most Serious Social Problem?
Fact Sheet, February 2006
The Scholarly Consensus on Marriage
Fact Sheet, February 2006
There’s a new consensus that marriage matters. Read select quotes from leading scholars and commentators.
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Family Structure and Children’s Educational Outcomes
Brief 1, November 2005
Family structure–whether a child�s parents are married, divorced, single, remarried, or cohabiting–is a significant influence on children�s educational performance.
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Why Marriage Matters, Second Edition: Twenty-Six Conclusions from the Social Sciences
Report, September 2005
Sixteen social scientists summarize marriage-related research into an extremely useful, succinct form.
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| Order ReportThe Consequences of Marriage for African Americans: A Comprehensive Literature Review
Report, Future of the Black Family Series, September 2005
Scholars still lack a comprehensive understanding of the consequences of marriage for African Americans. This report seeks to close that knowledge gap.
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