Since the 1970s, a number of demographic and economic changes have dramatically altered the context in which youth and adults become parents.  The current study addresses the implications of these changes for the transition to biological parenthood among U.S. adolescents and adults, with a particular focus on early fatherhood and its circumstances (i.e., whether the father is single, romantically involved, cohabiting, or married).  Toward this end, we plan on answering these questions:

1)      How do demographic factors, such as living apart from a biological father, influence the timing and circumstances of biological fatherhood?

2)      How do socioeconomic factors, such as parental education, influence the timing and circumstances of biological fatherhood?

3)      How do different social policies, such as the rate of paternity establishment within states, influence the transition to biological fatherhood?

4)      What are the social psychological and family processes by which these factors influence the transition to biological fatherhood?

5)      What influence do these factors have on behaviors that condition the timing and circumstances of biological fatherhood, specifically, sexual behavior, contraceptive use, and pregnancy?

6)      How does the influence of different factors on the transition to biological fatherhood differ by age, historical period, race/ethnicity, and socioeconomic background?

To answer these questions, we will use data from several nationally representative surveys.  We also plan to utilize a data set to be developed by the P01 core that will include socioeconomic, demographic, and policy variables at the state, county, and tract levels for the years during which sample members are at risk of becoming a father.  Our models will estimate the effects of variables measured at several levels on the risk of becoming a father.  Additionally, for comparative purposes, we will conduct a number of analyses that consider the transition to parenthood for women.