Data Alerts

November 3, 2011 A data file from the Year 9 wave of data collection is now available through the Princeton University Office of Population Research Data Archive. STATA, SAS, and SPSS versions of this file can be downloaded and merged with files from previous waves. This new file contains survey data from the core biological mother and father, primary caregiver, child, and teacher interviews, as well as data from the in-home assessments and observations. See our documentation page for more information about these files.

News and Updates

Sign up for our e-newsletter to receive bi-monthly updates on newly published articles featuring the Fragile Families data, as well as data alerts, upcoming conferences, and news about the Study.

The Fragile Families Study will have an exhibit booth at the Population Association of America 2012 Annual Meeting in San Francisco, May 3-5. Click here for a list of PAA presentations that use the Fragile Families data.

The Center for Research on Child Wellbeing is currently accepting applications for a Postdoctoral Research Associate for the 2012-2013 academic year.

The Columbia Population Research Center will soon be accepting applications for the Fragile Families Data Workshop to be held July 11-13, 2012, at the Columbia University School of Social Work in New York City.

Drawing on research done with the Fragile Families data, The Institute for Children, Poverty, and Homelessness published a series of research briefs highlighting the characteristics of families with young children who become homeless in urban U.S. These include: Profiles of Risk: Characterizing Housing Instability, Profiles of Risk: Education, Profiles of Risk: Family Structure, and Profiles of Risk: Fertility.

New Study Resources

Family Taskforce Presentation: A Closer Look At Unmarried Families

Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing Study Fact Sheet

A recent issue of The Future of Children journal highlights research from the Fragile Families Study and recommends policies for reducing unwanted pregnancies, improving relationship stability and father involvement, and increasing children’s access to such support programs as high-quality health care and early childhood education. The Fall 2010 volume, Fragile Families, can be accessed in full online.

Fragile Families Working Group

Fragile Families Working Group seminars are open to Princeton and Columbia University graduate students and faculty. All seminars take place on Thursdays from 12 to 1 p.m. At Princeton, seminars are located in Wallace Hall, Room 001. Please see the full schedule for Spring 2012 and contact ffdata@princeton.edu for more information.

February 16. "Incarceration and Father Involvement." Presented by Amanda Geller and Irv Garfinkel.

March 1. "Mother-Child Relationships in Fragile Families: Going Beyond the HOME Scales." Presented by Anne Martin and Jeanne Brooks-Gunn.

Recent Publications

HIGHLIGHTED JOURNAL ARTICLE

The Woodrow Wilson School issued a press release and a brief summary on a recent Fragile Families publication in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences: Role of Mother’s Genes and Environment in Postpartum Depression by Colter Mitchell, Daniel Notterman, Jeanne Brooks-Gunn, John Hobcraft, Irwin Garfinkel, Kate Jaeger, Iulia Kotenko, & Sara McLanahan.

BOOKS

Childbearing among Cohabiting Women: Race, Pregnancy, and Union Transitions by Daniel T. Lichter In: Early Adulthood in a Family Context by Alan Booth, Susan L. Brown, Nancy S. Landale, Wendy D. Manning, and Susan M. McHale (Eds.)

Family Instability and Complexity after a Nonmarital Birth: Outcomes for Children in Fragile Families by Sara McLanahan In: Social Class and Changing Families in an Unequal America by Marica J. Carlson and Paula England (Eds.)

RESEARCH BRIEFS

December 2011- Brief 47 "Incarceration and Housing Insecurity among Urban Fathers"

WORKING PAPERS

2012-03-FF "Life Shocks and Homelessness" by Marah A. Curtis, Hope Corman, Kelly Noonan, and Nancy E. Reichman

2012-02-FF "Partner Incarceration and Women's Housing Insecurity" by Amanda Geller and Allyson Walker

2012-01-FF "Child Care Subsidies, Maternal Well-Being, and Child-Parent Interactions: Evidence from Three Nationally Representative Datasets" by Chris Herbst and Erdal Tekin