The Detroit Area Study (DAS) has served for 25 years as one model of how a sociology faculty can combine productive research and graduate training within a single small unit. This paper outlines the current structure and costs of DAS, describes its math advantages and limitations, and suggests several ways in which other universities might develop units that are similar but not identical to DAS. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
Mason, Karen Oppenheim, Kuhlthau, Karen, Mason, K O, and Kuhlthau, K
Subjects
CHILD care, CHILDREN, FERTILITY, FAMILIES, AGE distribution, ATTITUDE (Psychology), BIRTH intervals, COMPARATIVE studies, EMPLOYMENT, RESEARCH methodology, MEDICAL cooperation, PSYCHOLOGY of mothers, POPULATION, RESEARCH, RESEARCH funding, COST analysis, SOCIOECONOMIC factors, EVALUATION research, ACQUISITION of data, ECONOMICS
Abstract
In a sample of Detroit-area mothers of preschool-aged children interviewed in 1986, one-third reported that child care problems had constrained their employment. Such reports were relatively prevalent among poor women, those without relatives nearby, and those willing to entrust the care of their children to nonfamily members. Only one-tenth of the sample reported a similar child care constraint on fertility, a phenomenon unrelated to income but relatively prevalent among women with strong labor force attachment. The results suggest that policies to increase the supply of child care or to lower its cost could increase female labor supply by a substantial fraction, with an even greater rise among women most at risk of poverty and reliance on public assistance, but probably would not raise fertility significantly. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
MARRIED women, FERTILITY, FAMILY size, FAMILIES, ATTITUDE (Psychology), BIRTH rate, COMPARATIVE studies, LONGITUDINAL method, RESEARCH methodology, MEDICAL cooperation, RESEARCH, SOCIOECONOMIC factors, EVALUATION research, PARITY (Obstetrics)
Abstract
A measure of underlying family size preference obtained for a sample of Detroit married women in 1962 is related to their fertility over a 15-year follow-up period. The data represent completed fertility. The I-scale preference measure used differs from the conventional single-valued statement of number of children wanted; it is a more fine-grained measure reflecting the respondent's utility for children as evidenced by her entire preference order. The scales are found to be consistently predictive of fertility over the 15-year prospective period, net of other variables usually associated with differential fertility. The results for the just-married sample, in which preferences and expectations are not confounded with the number of children already born, are particularly striking, with underlying preference much better than expected family size as a predictor of fertility over the entire reproductive cycle. The question of prediction for continuous and discontinuous marriages is discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]