Family

Family sociologists explore the ways in which families are affected by the social structures and cultural contexts in which they are embedded, and in turn, how families affect individuals’ well-being. Faculty members in this specialization study a wide array of topics that span the adult life course, including the impact of relationship quality with family members on psychological well-being, physical health and health behaviors, the influence of marriage and fertility on women's status, health, and well-being in sub-Saharan Africa, patterns and consequences of parental favoritism, caregiving to older family members, sibling relationships in adulthood, and the ways in which paid work has the potential to support or harm families.

Training in this area emphasizes theoretical and methodological advances in the study of families, using quantitative, qualitative, and mixed-methods approaches, and involves close collaboration with faculty mentors to create new scholarship.

Faculty

Scott Feld, Danielle Kane, Christie Sennott, J. Jill Suitor and Jeremy Reynolds