Abstract
This article develops a typology of family change over the first five years of children's lives using data from the Millennium Cohort Study. It examines the changes over time of parental living arrangements and describes a range of social, economic and well‐being indicators. It shows that nearly three quarters of this sample of young children have not experienced changes in family structures. The most advantaged group appears to be children living with continuously married parents, followed by those who live with cohabiting parents who marry. Children who experienced changes in family structure are a diverse group. Coupled parents who separate suffer the largest drop in income over five years. Lone parents who partner gain the most income. However, their incomes are still much lower than continuously partnered parents. This article suggests that using static or overly simplified measures of family structure hides important variations in the experiences of children.
Article PDF
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Additional information
This article describes the family environment that young children experience during the first five years of their lives using data from the Millennium Cohort Study (MCS).
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Panico, L., Bartley, M., Kelly, Y. et al. Changes in family structure in early childhood in the Millennium Cohort Study. Popul Trends 142, 78–92 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1057/pt.2010.32
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1057/pt.2010.32