We use data from the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing Study to examine couple how couple relationship quality and parental engagement are linked over children’s early years. Our sample includes 1,630 couples that are co-resident over years 1 to 3 and 1,376 over years 3 to 5 (1,196 over...

This study exploits rich data from the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing Study (FFCWS) to distinguish the effects of family structure at birth from family stability over time on child cognitive, socio-emotional and health outcomes. We define two models: one that measures family structure at...

Existing research shows that marriage and marital stability are positively associated with health and well-being. Thus, recent increases in births to unmarried parents and the instability surrounding these relationships raise concerns about the possible health effects associated with changes in...

This study examined the longitudinal associations between sustained attention in preschool and children’s school success in later elementary school within a low-income sample (N = 2,403). Specifically, two facets of sustained attention (focused attention and lack of impulsivity) at age 5 were...

We use data from the Fragile Families Study (N=1975) to examine the relationship between mothers’ partnership changes and parenting behavior during the first five years of their child’s life. We compare coresidential and dating transitions and recent and more distal transitions. We also...