Marriage & Family Issues

The link between growing up outside of an intact family, and the likelihood of engaging in risky sexual behaviors as an adolescent has been explored extensively.

  ASPE RESEARCH BRIEF American Community Survey: New Survey Questions Enable Measurement of Marital Transitions October 2008 This Research Brief is available on the Internet at:http://aspe.hhs.gov/hsp/09/MarriageDivorceStats/ACSBrief/rb.shtml

Prepared By: Robert G. Wood, Sarah Avellar, Brian Goesling Mathematica Policy Research, Inc. (MPR)Project Director:  Robert G. Wood

Marriage patterns in the United States have changed substantially in recent decades. People are marrying later in life than they did 40 years ago and young adults today are spending more time unmarried than earlier generations did (Schoen and Standish 2001; Fields 2004).

This report examines potential precursors of the changes in adult marriage patterns in recent decades. It draws on data from four large national surveys to examine the experiences and attitudes of teenagers to gain a better understanding of factors that influence their views of marriage and their relationship choices in adulthood.

The number of individuals involved in the criminal justice system is at a historic high. There are almost 2.3 million individuals in U.S. jails and prisons and more than 798,000 people on parole.

Prepared for U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS)Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation (ASPE)Administration for Children and Families/Office of Family Assistance