作者利用1980-95年的“家庭收支調查”來估計單親家庭的比例，以及他們的社會經濟特徵。研究發現，單親家庭在這段期間有顯著的上升。在1980-83年間，約每25個有十八歲以下小孩的家庭才有一個家庭是由未婚、離婚、分居、或喪偶所形成的單親家庭，但這個比例在1992-95年間上升至每18個家庭便有一個單親家庭。在單親家庭顯著成長的同時，他們的社會經濟屬性也有顯著的改變。最顯著的改變為離婚單親家庭的顯著成長，他們比傳統的單親家庭（以喪偶為主的單親家庭）年輕且有較好的教育程度。統經濟福利指標而言，依家庭大小而調整後的所得與支出、恩格爾指標、與貧窮率都指出單親家庭的弱勢，其中又以喪偶與分居的單親家庭最為弱勢。

Using Family Income and Expenditures Survey from 1980 to 1995 waves, the proportion of single-parent families and their socioeconomic characteristics are examined. The finding shows that the number of single-parent families significantly increased during this period. In 1980-83 about one out of every 25 families with children was headed by a parent who had never married or who was divorced, separated, or widowed. But the number had risen to one out of every 18 families between 1992 and 1995. This increase was accompanied by substantial changes in the socioeconomic characteristics of the families. The number of divorced parents significantly increased; they were younger and more educated than traditional single parents were, who in the earlier period had tended to be widowed. Measures of economic well-being, such as the size-adjusted income and expenditures, the Engel index, and the poverty rates, all indicate the inferior status of single-parent families in society. In particular, families headed by widowed and separated mothers were the worst off.