Unmarried Parents Research Articles

The Case for Mom and Dad.

Children raised apart from the care of both natural parents consistently experience lower developmental outcomes. Traditional, religious marriage norms-a lifelong, exclusive sexual union between man and woman-benefit children by establishing strong conditions that promote such care. More than any other family arrangement, marriage assures to children the care of their own mom and dad.

Preterm Birth and Low Birth Weight in Extramarital Birth in Korea: 2015-2018 Years

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to analyze the risk of preterm birth (PTB) and low birth weight (LBW) in babies born to unmarried parents (extramarital birth). Methods: This study used birth certificate data (1,523,594 births) from Korea Statistics, 2015-2018 years. Odds ratio and 95% confidence intervals were calculated by logistic regression analyses to describe the risk of PTB and LBW in extramarital birth adjusted for maternal age, maternal education, infantile sex, and type of birth (singleton & multiple birth). Results: During this periods, the rate of extramarital birth was 1.9 percent in 2015-2018. The incidence of LBW was 8.4 percent in extramarital birth and 5.9 percent in marital birth. The rate of PTB in extramarital birth were 10.6 percent and 7.3 percent in marital birth. The LBW and PTB rate of extramarital birth (father listed on the birth certificate) was 7.4 percent and 9.1 percent, respectively. Among extramarital birth (father not listed on the birth certificate) was associated with increased risk of PTB (12.3%) and LBW (9.5%). Compared with LBW and PTB rate of marital birth, the odds ratio (OR) for LBW and PTB were 1.66 (95% confidence interval, 95% CI: 1.56-1.77) and 1.57 (95% CI: 1.49-1.67) for extramarital birth (father listed). Risk of LBW (OR: 2.14) and PTB (OR: 2.14) was higher in extramarital birth (father not listed) than that of marital birth. Conclusions: The babies born to unmarried parents was associated with increased risk of LBW and PTB, compared with those of marital birth. Risk of adversed pregnancy outcome was higher in extramarital birth (father not listed on the birth certificate). More study is required to understand the factors to adversed pregnancy outcome of extramarital status.

Unmasking an Enigma: Who Was Lady Wallace and What Did She Achieve?

Lady Wallace had a remarkable life but she has remained a tantalizingly enigmatic figure, not least because we have nothing written in her own hand. She was born in Paris to unmarried parents, a factotum and a linen maid, in 1819. She lived in England from 1872 until her death in 1897, but had a reputation here for speaking only French. Yet she bequeathed to the British nation an art collection described by Lord Rosebery in 1900 as ‘the greatest gift, I believe, that has ever been made by an individual to our country’: the Wallace Collection. Assessing her motivation in making the bequest is not straightforward. While it has been generally assumed that she was simply fulfilling her late husband Sir Richard’s wishes, information circulating at the time and published by the Wallace Collection for many years afterwards stated that she made the bequest at the suggestion of the Wallaces’ private secretary and her residuary legatee, Sir John Murray Scott. Another dichotomy concerns her personality and taste: was she intellectually unremarkable and lacking in discernment, as Baron Ferdinand de Rothschild judged her, or ‘a very refined, shy and excellent lady’, as described by Lord Esher? This article will assess Lady Wallace and her achievements within the context of her time, before considering her afterlife at the Wallace Collection and the role of her bequest in influencing later women patrons of the arts.

Putting a Ring on It: Men’s Work in the Underground Economy and the Decision to Marry

ABSTRACT Men’s employment is an important predictor of union formation and couples’ transitions to marriage, but previous research has not investigated the extent to which the type of men’s employment affects the likelihood of marriage. To fill this gap, we use multinomial logistic regression and data from the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing Study (N = 3,128) to explore whether men’s employment in the underground economy inhibits or promotes the transition to marriage among unmarried parents three years after the birth of their child. The results show that underground work is associated with relationship instability and serves as a barrier to marriage. Thus, in fragile families, the type of work that the father does, independent of the amount of income he earns from such employment, drives couples’ decisions to marry. Implications for research and policy that stem from the findings are discussed.

The Stigmas Associated With Teen Parenting: How Gender-Stereotypical Expectations Contribute

One hundred three students from a small liberal arts college rated statements about potential stigma associated with unmarried teen parents. After reading a scenario describing an unmarried teen couple’s pregnancy and early parenting experiences, participants indicated their level of agreement with 11 statements for either the mother or the father. Multivariate analysis of variance comparisons of the items indicated that the focus of attention was on the mother, in both positive and negative ways. Compared to unmarried teen fathers, unmarried teen mothers were seen as more sexually promiscuous, and too young to be a parent. On the other hand, mothers were also rated significantly as spending more time with their child, and assumed as more responsible. Unmarried teen fathers were seen as significantly more ambitious, whereas respondents thought it was more important for mothers to continue their education. Results reinforce the idea that unmarried teen mothers are expected to bear a disproportionate amount of the burden of care for their child. Knowledge of these results could lead to greater sensitivity toward unmarried teen parents and lend to more helpful support, which could assist them, and their children, to succeed despite their circumstances.

Illegitimate parenthood in early modern Europe

ABSTRACT This special section presents new research on the ways in which unmarried parents – particularly women – negotiated illegitimacy, how they interacted with urban institutions, and what legal resources they had. Throughout the early modern period, extramarital pregnancies were an important issue of concern to urban authorities and city dwellers. In line with recent historiographic strands, the two articles in this section approach the topic of unwed motherhood from below. The articles pay particular attention to the interactions between institutions and unwed mothers, the diversity of identities of unmarried parenthood, and the agency of unwed mothers in early modern Europe. Geographically, the contributions cover evidence from cities in Italy, Germany, Holland and Switzerland. In this introduction, we contextualize the most important issues addressed in the contributions. We explain why early modern societies regarded unwed motherhood as such a serious problem and expound the concept of ‘agency’ in relation to illegitimacy. We then elaborate on the institutions that dealt with unmarried parenthood in early modern Europe and their possible effect on the agency of unmarried mothers. This includes the impact of changes on the treatment of illegitimacy by institutions, and the North-South divide with regard to attitudes towards unwed parenthood.

Members of Minorities, Low-Income Communities Get Less Sleep, Have More Sleep Problems

Members of Minorities, Low-Income Communities Get Less Sleep, Have More Sleep Problems

The Case for Mom and Dad

An extensive and diverse body of research finds that, compared to children continuously living with two parents, married parents, or their own biological parents, children in other family arrangements consistently experience lower emotional wellbeing, physical health and academic achievement. Competing studies have variously attributed this difference to a lack of 1) married parents, 2) two parents, 3) complementary man/woman parents, or 4) family stability, but these possibilities have not previously been studied in combination. To address this question, family structure differences and determinants of child wellbeing (reverse coded to show child distress) were examined using the 2008-2018 National Health Interview Surveys (n=82,635). Separately, adjusted odds ratios (AOR) for child emotional problems were higher with fewer than two parents (AOR 1.42 95% CI 1.27-1.56), unmarried parents (1.46 95% CI 1.31-1.61), unstable parents (1.55 95% CI 1.27-1.76) or fewer than two biological parents (AOR 1.70 95% CI 1.55-2.87 for one biological parent; 4.77 95% CI 3.95-5.77 for no biological parents). When combined in the same model only the lack of joint biological parentage accounted for higher distress, with outcomes significantly worse without the biological father than without the biological mother (Interaction AOR 1.33 95% CI 1.04-1.71). This evidence strongly supports the claim that maximum child development occurs only in the persistent care of both of the child’s own biological parents. Marriage benefits children primarily by ensuring such care. Implications are discussed.

Grandparents' Support to Young Families: Variations by Adult Children's Union Status†

AbstractObjectiveThis study investigates whether grandparents' support to their children's families varies by the child's union status—single, cohabiting, or married.BackgroundMore young families today are headed by unmarried parents due to increases in nonmarital childbearing, cohabitation, and divorce, and these families have fewer resources than married‐couple families. Grandparents can provide an important safety net to families in need. Although grandparents today possess a greater capacity to assist their children's families due to increased longevity, good health and financial well‐being, little is known about whether their support varies based on their adult children's union status.MethodData are drawn from the 2015–2017 Add Health Parent Study (AHPS) ( https://www.cpc.unc.edu/projects/addhealth/design/parents‐phase‐2), a follow‐up study of 2013 parents who participated in the 1995 Add Health Study with their adolescents. Respondents' reports of instrumental and financial support to children, ages 18–40, and their children are analyzed. Mixed effects logistic regressions estimate the likelihood of support to 399 cohabiting, 518 single, and 1959 married children. Follow‐up regressions estimate amounts of support to those receiving any assistance.ResultsGrandparents are more likely to provide instrumental and financial assistance to cohabiting and single children than married children. Cohabiting females receive more hours of instrumental help from grandparents than married females. Single and cohabiting children receive higher levels of financial assistance than married children.ConclusionGrandparental support appears responsive to the needs of their adult children. Nontraditional families no longer receive less extended‐family support. Grandparents today appear to play an important support role for their children's families.

Assessing the Impact of Parents’ Adolescent Reproductive and Sexual Health Knowledge on Sexual Health Education by Parents in the Asutifi (North and South) Districts of Ghana

Parent’s involvement in adolescent sexual health education has been identified as one of the effective ways of reducing sexual risk behaviour among adolescents. However, a number of factors may prevent parents from carrying out adolescent sexual health education. Four hundred and twenty-four (424) parents/guardians, including 180 males and 244 females were randomly selected from the Asutifi north and south districts of the Brong- Ahafo region of Ghana for the cross- sectional study. Self-administered and interviewer-administered questionnaires consisting of demographic characteristics, parent’s knowledge on adolescent sexual health, socioeconomic factors, cultural factors and practice of sexual health education were the measures for the study. Literate respondents had self-administered questionnaire while illiterate respondents had interviewer administered questionnaires. Interviewers translated the questionnaire from the English language to the local language (Twi) for illiterate respondents to ensure better understanding of the questions. 86.1% of the surveyed parents practice adolescent sexual health education. Females as well as married parents were found to practice sexual health education (SHE) more than male and unmarried parents respectively. Two variables remained significant after controlling for relevant demographic and other factors. These included parent’s knowledges on adolescent sexual health (OR=2.35; 95% CI 1.34-4.09) and parents’ level of education (OR= 3.47; 95% CI 1.27-9.45). Government agencies in collaboration with stake holders should develop policies that will ensure that parents are given the necessary training that will boost both their level of education and knowledge on adolescent sexual health.

Mothers' Work Schedule Inflexibility and Children's Behavior Problems.

Flexibility in work schedules is key to helping parents with young children balance work and caregiving responsibilities. Prior research shows that work schedule inflexibility is associated with greater parenting stress and work-family conflict. Through these negative implications for parental wellbeing, work schedule inflexibility may also adversely influence children's socioemotional development. This study uses data from an urban, birth-cohort sample of children born to predominantly unmarried parents, the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing study, to test the hypothesis that mothers' perceived work schedule inflexibility is associated with children's behavior problems at age 5. Results from lagged dependent variable models suggest that mothers' high work schedule inflexibility was associated with more externalizing and internalizing behavior problems in their children, relative to experiencing low inflexibility. These associations were partially mediated by mothers' parenting stress and depressive symptoms, and for externalizing behaviors only, these associations were concentrated among single-mother and low-income families.

Caregivers and Tax Reform: Before and After Snapshots

The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) changed the way families are taxed, starting in tax year 2018. By rearranging a myriad of deck chairs, politicians painted rosy pictures of families reaping the benefits of tax reform. In reality, however, generalizations cannot be made and the extent to which any one family gains or loses depends on particular facts. Even more obscured is the way in which the TCJA changed –– and failed to change –– the taxation of different types of caregivers. This Essay seeks to provide needed clarity in this area. It begins by offering snapshots of how parents of minor children were taxed immediately prior to and after the TCJA’s enactment. Specifically, while the TCJA expanded some of the general benefits available to parents of minor children, it failed to expand — and in critical cases, even preserve — specific benefits that are contingent on “parenting model.” For instance, the TCJA departed from historical norms by rolling back benefits reserved for unmarried parents and failed to make long over-due inflation adjustments to provisions of the Code that allow dual earning couples and unmarried parents (but not sole earning couples) to recover childcare costs incurred to work outside the home. These snapshots reveal how Congress, through the TCJA, picked winners and losers, enacting tax reform that disproportionately favored sole earners at the expense of other parents. This Essay next turns to other types of care-giving, such as elder care, and develops two more pre-and post-reform snapshots. These pictures show how the inequities that result from Congress’ favoritism of sole earners extend to other care-giving arrangements and how these inequities compound for members of the “sandwich generation” who provide both parental and non-parental care. In the end, this Essay develops a series of snapshots that contrast starkly with rosy political rhetoric and which reveal that the TCJA not only failed to address many pre-existing tax inequities between caregivers but also made them worse.

Father Involvement Among Nonresident Dads: Does Paternity Leave Matter?

AbstractObjectiveThis article examines whether paternity leave influences father involvement among nonresident fathers, if associations differ by coresidential status, and whether leave is a stronger predictor of nonresident father involvement than other indicators of father identity or interest.BackgroundFathering promotes child development, yet many children are born to unmarried parents and do not live with their fathers. Paternity leave may increase fathering among nonresident fathers, but extant research has largely overlooked these fathers.MethodUsing the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing Study (N∼2,000), a longitudinal birth cohort of largely low‐income families, this study examines the link between paternity leave and parenting using regression analyses.ResultsLeave‐taking was associated with higher reports of engagement for both coresident and nonresident fathers, but for maternal reports of trust, coparenting, and responsibility, the positive associations with leave‐taking were concentrated among nonresident fathers. Nonresident fathers who took leave were more likely to provide in‐kind child support but not monetary support. Although leave, prenatal involvement, and being at the birth were all associated with greater involvement among nonresident fathers, mothers' reports of fathering were more strongly influenced by prenatal involvement and being at the hospital for the birth than leave.ConclusionLeave‐taking is associated with maternal reports of trust, coparenting, and responsibility for nonresident fathers but not coresident fathers. Leave and prenatal involvement predict nonresident father involvement.

Adverse childhood experiences and mental health in adulthood: Evidence from North Carolina

BackgroundAbout 1.4 million adults in North Carolina (NC) have mental illnesses. Many get no treatment because of mental health care provider shortages. Necessary prevention requires identification of covariates of mental illness. Study objectiveWe tested the hypotheses: There is no difference in adulthood mental health of the ACE-affected and the unaffected; ACEs do not significantly predict adulthood mental health. MethodsACEs studied were: living with a mentally ill person, an alcoholic, or drug abuser; witnessing violence; having divorced or unmarried parents; and being physically, mentally or sexually abused. We used data from 2012 and 2014 NC Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System. We had 19,187 observations with about 13,900 including ACE data. We conducted t- and χ2 tests of mental health differences between ACE-affected and unaffected and regression analysis to determine mental health predictors. ResultsACE distribution was: 26.2% had parents or adults swearing at- or insulting them; 25% had divorced or unmarried parents; 22.6% lived with an alcoholic; 15.7% witnessed their parents beat each other; 13.8% lived with a mentally ill person; and 13.6% were hit or beaten by an adult in the home. Respondents also reported being touched sexually (9.4%); living with an adult who abused drugs (7.9%); and 4.1% were forced to have sex. The ACE-affected experienced significantly (p < 0.001) more days of poor mental health and had a higher likelihood of depression diagnosis than the unaffected. ACEs are statistically significant predictors of poor mental health in adulthood.

American Indian Fragile Families and the Marriage Initiative

Beginning in the mid-1990s, the federal government, supported by both Republican and Democratic administrations, has allocated roughly $1.5 billion to promote “healthy marriage initiatives.” A major target of these initiatives have been unmarried parents, or what researchers call fragile families. Over the past two decades, studies have examined this issue within the general population. This study applied three areas of the marriage initiative used by McLanahan (2006) to American Indian people: potential participation in marriage promotion programs, potential impact of marriage programs, and likelihood of marriage. Data for 3,152 women were examined from the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing Study, including 154 who self-identified as American Indian. This study showed that American Indians exhibited a high willingness to participate in marriage promotion programs. American Indians were less likely than other racial/ethnic groups to see marriage as better for children. This study underscores the need to understand American Indian families and their unique approaches to developing healthy marriage and family structures. For marriage promotion programs to work, they should reflect the cultural practices of the individual American Indian communities.

Intergenerational Transmission of Unemployment: Causal Evidence from Austria

We estimate the causal effect of parents' unemployment on unemployment among their children in their own adulthood. We use administrative data for Austrian children born between 1974 and 1984 and apply an instrumental variables (IV) identification strategy using parents' job loss during a mass layoff as the instrument. We find evidence of unemployment inheritance in the next generation. An additional day of unemployment during childhood causally raises the average unemployment days of the adult child by 1 to 2%. The greatest effects are observed for unmarried parents, young children, children of low-education parents, and in families living in capital cities. We also explore various channels of intergenerational unemployment, such as education, income, and job matching by parents.

Newborn health and the business cycle: The role of birth order

We use 35 years of administrative data to document how newborn health varies with the business cycle in Spain. In panel regressions that include province and year fixed effects as well as province trends, we show that children have significantly better health outcomes at birth in times of high unemployment: a 10 percentage-point increase in the unemployment rate is significantly associated with about 2 log-points higher birth-weight, almost 2 percentage points fewer babies with low birth weight, 0.6 points fewer babies with very low birth-weight, and a 0.4-point drop in mortality rates in the first 24 h We explore several potential mechanisms. First, we show that the documented association is not driven by in-utero selection: we do not find that high unemployment is associated with more miscarriages, abortions, or stillbirths. Second, we explore the role of composition in terms of parental characteristics. We find evidence that unmarried and younger parents, who typically have unhealthier babies, are relatively less likely to have children when unemployment is high. Finally, we show that there are fewer first births during recessions, and birth order is strongly positively correlated with health at birth. Birth order can account for up to one fifth of the countercyclicality of birth weight.

Platelet Function Disorder Is More Common Than Von Willebrand Disease in Women with Inherited Bleeding Disorders: Report from a Public Sector University in Pakistan

Abstract Introduction: Inherited bleeding disorders are an important cause of menorrhagia. Aim: To determine the prevalence of inherited bleeding disorders in women with menorrhagia in the absence of systemic and pelvic pathologies. Methods: The study period was from March 2013 to September 2018. It was carried out at the Department of Obstetrics &amp; Gynecology, Unit II, Dow Medical College and Ruth Pfau KM Civil Hospital in Karachi. The laboratory investigations were carried out partly at Dow Diagnostic Research Laboratory and mainly at the National Institute of Blood Disease &amp; Bone Marrow Transplant. Included in the study were young girls and women who presented with menorrhagia at menarche or in the later years of reproduction, with normal bimanual pelvic examination and pelvic ultrasound results. Results: Approximately 200 women with a mean menstrual cycle duration of 9.3+ 3.5 days were included. The mean age of the included patients was 32 years. Married women's partners were cousins in 50% of the women, while unmarried girls' parents were cousins in all cases. Platelet aggregation defect was presented in 33 (16.6%) women, von Willebrand disease in 26 (13.1%) women, factor IX deficiency in 20 (10%) women, combined defects in 29 (14.6%) women, and factor VII and VIII deficiencies in 4 and 11 (2%, 5.5%) women, respectively. Isolated defect with ADP, epinephrine, and collagen were decreased in 35 (17.6%), 41 (20%), and 33 (16%) women, respectively. Conclusion: Inherited bleeding disorders were a common cause of menorrhagia in our population. Consanguinity was frequently seen in these subjects. Except for some forms of VWD, all other disorders have an autosomal recessive inheritance pattern. After excluding gynecological and medical causes, a work up for inherited bleeding disorders should be advised. Keywords: menorrhagia, platelet function disorder, inherited bleeding disorders, Pakistan. Disclosures No relevant conflicts of interest to declare.

Predicting program retention in a flexibly-delivered relationship education program for low-income, unmarried parents

ABSTRACT Participation rates in couple relationship education (CRE) programs for low-income couples are typically low. We examined predictors of session attendance and early dropout (i.e., dropout after 1 session) among a sample of low-income, unmarried parents of a newborn (N = 467 couples) enrolled in an evidence-based CRE program. Predictors included demographics and socioeconomic status, as well as baseline indicators of relationship commitment, family and individual functioning, infant health, preventive health care utilization, and CRE coach perceptions of participant engagement and alliance in the first session of the program. Couples attended an average of 4.4 (SD = 2.5) of the 7 sessions, with nearly a quarter of couples dropping out after the first session. Attendance at fewer sessions was predicted by younger age. Early dropout was predicted by lower ratings of females’ engagement and both partners’ therapeutic alliance and, unexpectedly, by commitment. We discuss considerations for engaging low-income couples in CRE.

The Constitution of Parenthood

This Article challenges the conventional assumption that the Constitution protects only biological parent-child relationships and makes an affirmative case for constitutional protection for nonbiological parents. Family law in a growing number of states legally recognizes nonbiological parents in a range of families—including nonmarital families, families headed by same-sex couples, and families formed through assisted reproduction. But in some states, nonbiological parents who have not adopted are treated as legal strangers to their children. When these parents turn to the Constitution to assert a liberty interest in their parent-child relationship, they find no relief. Courts conclude that only biological parents possess a right to parental recognition protected by the Due Process Clause. This biological understanding of constitutional parenthood often rests on a reading of Supreme Court precedents from the 1970s and 1980s involving the rights of unmarried fathers and the status of foster parents. This Article revisits those precedents—both to show that they present a more complicated approach to parenthood than conventionally assumed and to make clear the ways in which they are in tension with more recent constitutional commitments. Rather than elaborate a biological approach to parenthood, the Court’s decisions on unmarried fathers and foster parents view parenthood as a social practice. Even as these precedents provide useful insights about parenthood’s social dimensions, they are outdated. Decided decades ago, these decisions condone forms of inequality that now appear constitutionally suspect. Since they were decided, legal understandings of the family have shifted significantly. The Court itself has contributed to the changing legal landscape through its decisions on the constitutional rights of same-sex couples—who ordinarily include nonbiological parents. Today, insights, principles, and values observable in constitutional precedents on parenthood and the family point toward a liberty interest in parental recognition that reaches nonbiological parents. To show how, this Article turns to contemporary family-law developments. Modern family law takes from constitutional precedents important insights about parenthood and yet updates the meanings and implications of those precedents. Family law’s functional turn has featured the vindication of nonbiological parent-child bonds based in part on interpretations of constitutional decisions on unmarried fathers, foster parents, and same-sex couples. In valuing established parent-child bonds in marital and nonmarital families, in different-sex and same-sex couples, and for men and women, family-law authorities have found support in the Court’s decisions but have taken those decisions in more inclusive and egalitarian directions. Even as this functional vision of parenthood has arisen as a formal matter in family law, it reflects and extends important constitutional commitments in ways that shed light on the parent-child relationships that merit recognition as a matter of due process. Ultimately, constitutional understandings of parenthood may evolve in light of insights from family law. This Article’s examination of the law of parenthood contributes to an account of the dialogic relationship between family law and constitutional law—demonstrating how family-law authorities develop approaches to the family that draw on and apply constitutional principles in ways constitutional decisionmakers may eventually adopt.