ABSTRACT
Many reports and much scholarly research document the dramatic changes that have reshaped America's families since the 1970s (Bumpass & Lu, 2000; Bumpass & Sweet, 1989b; Casper & Bianchi, 2002; Teachman, Tedrow, & Crowder, 2000; U.S. Census Bureau, 1999a , 1999b). Undoubtedly, the profound changes that American families have undergone in the past three decades have significant implications for studying children and families and for a range of future social policies (Federal Interagency Forum on Child & Family Statistics, 2001). Because relationships among children and adults in a family have become more complex and can change rapidly, sophisticated methods are needed to accurately describe children's living arrangements and circumstances. Without more advanced methods for measuring household composition, American society will fail to fully comprehend the diverse needs of today's children, and families and will fall short of developing effective social and economic policies for the most vulnerable among them.
