Family demographer and scholar · University of Minnesota
I study how our closest relationships shape our health — and create data that makes that science possible.
I’m a Professor of Sociology with a joint appointment with the Minnesota Population Center. For over two decades I’ve asked how marriage, cohabitation, and parenthood are associated with our health and well-being — and lately I’ve been creating new data sources from from the National Couples’ Health and Time Study to the Work and Family Life Study 2022 to the IPUMS Contextual Determinants of Health data, that push family science and demography forward.
Research
Three themes, one through-line
My research program advances the science of families and health — how relationships shape health, who does the work of family life, and how unions are changing over time and across the life course.
Relationships & health
We were the first to establish the honeymoon as the ceiling: most spouses are never happier than at the start. And moving into — and out of — unions leaves real marks on mental health. Now we are establishing that our closest relationships impact us at the deepest biological levels.
Gender & the division of labor
We established that the transition to parenthood reshapes the division of labor in families – such that women’s workload increases by three times the number of hours of men’s – and while women are doing that work, men are doing leisure.
Life course trends in unions
Using forty years of data on marriages in the US, we have found that marital happiness has not changed even as the context of marriage has. We posit that marriage is gradually changing as an institution – and we are beginning to consider the role of technoference in that change.
Minneapolis.
Professional development
Building the data the field runs on
As a first generation college student, I had a LOT to learn! That is why I began blogging, to share some of my productivity, work-family balance, and academia decoding tips.
People & mentoring
Scholars I’m lucky to work with
Work like mine does not happen in alone – it takes a team and I have been surrounded by the best! Meet the team, past and present.
Teaching & media
The classroom and beyond
Winner of Ohio State’s highest teaching honor, I love teaching about families and the life course — and talking about this work with everyone who is interested.