ABSTRACT
Social scientists in many fields-demography, sociology, economics, anthropology and social psychology-are interested in the causes and consequences of family formation, dissolution and ties between family members living together or apart. However, conventional approaches to the collection and processing of demographic data relating individuals by blood, marriage or co-residence can hinder examination of issues relating to these topics. Surveys usually collect data on family relationships in one or both of two forms: as relationships of co-residing individuals to the head of the household and as marital, fertility and adoption histories. The problem with these methods is that they may not yield a full account of relationships among all relevant pairs of individuals in the family, including those present in the household and also family members not co-residing.
