Demography and Ecology, University of Wisconsin-Madison, which receives core support for

After three decades of substantial change in American family formation patterns and the resulting increase in single parent and stepparent families, researchers try to ascertain the intergenerational and socioeconomic consequences of these demographic changes. On average, children raised in nonintact families are less successful in making the transition from adolescence to adulthood relative to children raised with both parents, such that children from nonintact families are more likely to have a teen birth and less likely to complete high school and attend college (McLanahan & Sandefur, 1994). The children’s education and fertility outcomes, however, are probably not independent from each other. In fact, the life course perspective and prior research leads us to expect that starting a family impacts the development of one’s career and vice versa (Marini, 1978). Researchers have documented a clear link between economic decisions and family formation decisions (e.g., Marini and Fan, 1997). Researchers predicting a person’s socioeconomic status (such as education, income or labor force participation) recognize the importance of their fertility and family behavior. Likewise, researchers of fertility behavior and family structure acknowledge the importance of socioeconomic characteristics (such a