It is also important in connection with the ongoing contemporary debate about same-sex marriage and same-sex adoptive partners (Healey, 2008).

Research Question

1. How prevalent are so-called non-traditional families (NTFs) in the U.S.

2. What problems (if any) have been associated with NTFs?

3. Are children living in NTFs benefited or harmed by their situation?

4. Are children living in NTFs better off than children living with unhappily married parents in traditional families?

Problem Statement

So-called traditional families are still considered the norm in American society and they are often represented as the model for parenthood in particular. Meanwhile, there is likely ample reason to suspect that children raised in happy single-parent (and same-sex parent) families are happier than those raised by unhappily married parents in traditional families. If that is true, the prevailing social prejudice against non-traditional family structure is entirely unjustified by any evidence.

Research Hypotheses

1. Non-traditional...
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