Families in an Era of Increasing Inequality - Diverging Destinies

The widening gap between the rich and the poor is turning the American dream into an impossibility for many, particularly children and families. And as the children of low-income families grow to adulthood, they have less access to opportunities and resources than their higher-income peers--and increasing odds of repeating the experiences of their parents.
Families in an Era of Increasing Inequality probes the complex relations between social inequality and child development and examines possibilities for disrupting these ongoing patterns. Experts across the social sciences track trends in marriage, divorce, employment, and family structure across socioeconomic strata in the U.S. and other developed countries. These family data give readers a deeper understanding of how social class shapes children's paths to adulthood and how those paths continue to diverge over time and into future generations. In addition, contributors critique current policies and programs that havebeen created to reduce disparities and offer suggestions for more effective alternatives. Among the topics covered:

• Inequality begins at home: the role of parenting in the diverging destinies of rich and poor children.
• Inequality begins outside the home: putting parental educational investments into context.
• How class and family structure impact the transition to adulthood.
• Dealing with the consequences of changes in family composition.
• Dynamic models of poverty-related adversity and child outcomes.
• The diverging destinies of children and what it means for children's lives.

As new initiatives are sought to improve the lives of families and children in the short and long term, Families in an Era of Increasing Inequality is a key resource for researchers and practitioners in family studies, social work, health, education, sociology, demography, and psychology.

List of contents

I. Diverging Destinies for American Children.- Diverging Destinies Revisited.- Divergent responses to family inequality.- Diverging Destinies in Rural America.- Diverging Destinies Revisited: The Threat to Child Development and Social Mobility.- II .Social Inequality, Parenting, and Child Development.-Inequality Begins at Home: The Role of Parenting in the Diverging Destinies of Rich and Poor Children.- Subjective Rationality, Parenting Styles, and Investments in Children.- Inequality Begins Outside the Home: Putting Parental Educational Investments into Context.- Stressful Life Experiences and Contexts: The Effects on Parents and Parenting.- III. Social Inequality and the Transition to Adulthood.- Diverse Pathways: Rethinking the Transition to Adulthood.- The Transition to Adulthood Matters.- The Family Foundation: What do Class and Family Structure have to do with the Transition to Adulthood?.- Different Social Class Dimensions Play Different Roles in the Transition to Adulthood.- IV. Program and Policy Responses to Growing Family Inequality.- No Way Out: Dealing with the Consequences of Changes in Family Composition.- Struggling to Stay Afloat: Dynamic Models of Poverty-related Adversity and Child Outcomes.- The Diverging Destinies of Children and What it Means for Children's Lives.-V. Reflecting on Diverging Destinies of American Families.- Reflecting on The Diverging Destinies of American Families: Policy Approaches as we Move Forward.

About the author

Alan Booth, Ph.D., is Distinguished Professor of Sociology, Demography, and Human Development & Family Studies at The Pennsylvania State University. He has been a senior scientist in Penn State's Population Research Institute since 1991. Dr. Booth has co-organized the university's National Symposium of Family Issues since its inception in 1993. Dr. Booth directed a 20 year study of marital instability in a national sample of 2000 married persons. The project has been the basis for many studies on the causes of divorce, the effects of divorce on children's well-being, remarriage and step families, as well as the effects on psychological distress, educational achievement, romantic relationships and family formation of having a non-resident parent.

Susan M. McHale, Ph.D., is Director of the Social Science Research Institute and The Children, Youth, and Family Consortium and Professor of Human Development at The Pennsylvania State University. Her research focuses on children's and adolescents' family roles, relationships, and daily experiences and how these family dynamics are linked to youth development and adjustment.

Summary

The widening gap between the rich and the poor is turning the American dream into an impossibility for many, particularly children and families. And as the children of low-income families grow to adulthood, they have less access to opportunities and resources than their higher-income peers--and increasing odds of repeating the experiences of their parents.Families in an Era of Increasing Inequality probes the complex relations between social inequality and child development and examines possibilities for disrupting these ongoing patterns. Experts across the social sciences track trends in marriage, divorce, employment, and family structure across socioeconomic strata in the U.S. and other developed countries. These family data give readers a deeper understanding of how social class shapes children's paths to adulthood and how those paths continue to diverge over time and into future generations. In addition, contributors critique current policies and programs that havebeen created to reduce disparities and offer suggestions for more effective alternatives. Among the topics covered:Inequality begins at home: the role of parenting in the diverging destinies of rich and poor children.Inequality begins outside the home: putting parental educational investments into context.How class and family structure impact the transition to adulthood.Dealing with the consequences of changes in family composition.Dynamic models of poverty-related adversity and child outcomes.The diverging destinies of children and what it means for children's lives.As new initiatives are sought to improve the lives of families and children in the short and long term, Families in an Era of Increasing Inequality is a key resource for researchers and practitioners in family studies, social work, health, education, sociology, demography, and psychology.

Report

"The most appealing feature of the book is the inclusion of chapters from a wide range of disciplines including Economics, Psychology and Sociology. This diversity is stimulating and makes the book a thought-provoking and interesting volume. ... In short, the edited volume is an inspiring collection of chapters from a diverse set of scholars. Its main contribution is to bring together different approaches on given topics, mostly without presenting new research." (Diederik Boertien, European Journal of Population, February, 2016)

Product details

• Assisted by: Paul Amato (Editor), Paul R. Amato (Editor), Ala Booth (Editor), Alan Booth (Editor), Jennifer van Hook (Editor), Susan M McHale et al (Editor), Susan M McHale (Editor), Susan M. McHale (Editor), Jennifer Van Hook (Editor)
• Publisher: Springer, Berlin
• Languages: English
• Product format: Hardback
• Released: 26.05.2014
• EAN: 9783319083070
• ISBN: 978-3-31-908307-0
• No. of pages: 242
• Dimensions: 163 mm x 242 mm x 14 mm
• Weight: 543 g
• Illustrations: XIV, 242 p. 37 illus., 19 illus. in color.
• Series: National Symposium on Family Issues; National Symposium on Family Issues
• Subjects: Humanities, art, music > Psychology; Social sciences, law, business > Sociology > Miscellaneous