Social Class and Changing Families in an Unequal America

by Carlson, Marcia J.; England, Paula

• ISBN13: 9780804770897
• ISBN10: 0804770891
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2011-06-21
• Publisher: Stanford Univ Pr

Summary

American families are far more diverse and complex today than they were 50 years ago. As ideas about marriage, divorce, and remarriage have changed, so too have our understandings about cohabitation, childbearing, parenting, and the transition to adulthood. Americans of all socioeconomic backgrounds have witnessed changes in the nature of family life, but as this book reveals, these changes play out in very different ways for the wealthy or well off than they do for the poor. Social Class and Changing Families in an Unequal Americaoffers an up-to-the-moment assessment of the condition of the family in an era of growing inequality. Highlighting unique aspects of family behavior, it reveals the degree to which families' varying experiences are shaped by social class. This book offers a much needed assessment of contemporary family life amid the turbulent economic changes in the United States.

Author Biography

Marcia J. Carlson is Associate Professor of Sociology at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Paula England is Professor of Sociology at New York University.

Table of Contents

List of Figures and Tables	p. ix
Contributors	p. xi
Introduction: Social Class and Family Patterns in the United States	p. 1
Birth Control Use and Early, Unintended Births: Evidence for a Class Gradient	p. 21
Thinking about Demographic Family Difference: Fertility Differentials in an Unequal Society	p. 50
Between Poor and Prosperous: Do the Family Patterns of Moderately Educated Americans Deserve a Closer Look?	p. 68
Daddy, Baby; Momma, Maybe: Low-Income Urban Fathers and the ôPackage Dealö of Family Life	p. 85
Family Instability and Complexity after a Nonmarital Birth: Outcomes for Children in Fragile Families	p. 108
Social Class and the Transition to Adulthood: Differences in Parents' Interactions with Institutions	p. 134
Family Change, Public Response: Social Policy in an Era of Complex Families	p. 165
The Recent Transformation of the American Family: Witnessing and Exploring Social Change	p. 192
Index	p. 221
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