Heteronormativity is the concept that heterosexuality is the preferred or normal sexual orientation. It assumes the gender binary and that sexual and marital relations are most fitting between people of opposite sex.
Andrew M. Greeley was an American Catholic priest,sociologist,journalist and popular novelist. He was a professor of sociology at the University of Arizona and the University of Chicago,and a research associate with the National Opinion Research Center (NORC).
Courtship is the period wherein some couples get to know each other prior to a possible marriage or committed romantic,de facto relationship. Courtship traditionally may begin after a betrothal and may conclude with the celebration of marriage. A courtship may be an informal and private matter between two people or may be a public affair,or a formal arrangement with family approval. Traditionally,in the case of a formal engagement,it is the role of a male to actively "court" or "woo" a female,thus encouraging her to understand him and her receptiveness to a marriage proposal.
Premarital sex is sexual activity which is practiced by people before they are married. Premarital sex is considered a sin by a number of religions and also considered a moral issue which is taboo in many cultures. Since the Sexual Revolution of the 1960s,it has become accepted by certain liberal movements,especially in Western countries. A 2014 Pew study on global morality found that premarital sex was considered particularly unacceptable in "Muslim Majority Countries",such as Malaysia,Jordan and Pakistan,each having over 90% disapproval,while people in Western European countries were the most accepting,with Spain,Germany,and France expressing less than 10% disapproval.
Jonathan Charles Rauch is an American author,journalist,and activist. After graduating from Yale University,Rauch worked at the Winston-Salem Journal in North Carolina,for National Journal,and later for The Economist and as a freelance writer. He is currently a senior fellow in governance studies at the Brookings Institution and a contributing editor of The Atlantic.
Sociology of the family is a subfield of the subject of sociology,in which researchers and academics study family structure as a social institution and unit of socialization from various sociological perspectives. It can be seen as an example of patterned social relations and group dynamics.
Buffy studies,also called Buffyology,is the study of Joss Whedon's popular television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer and,to a lesser extent,its spin-off program Angel. It explores issues related to gender,family,ethics and other philosophical issues as expressed through the content of these shows in the fictional Buffyverse.
Robert John Wuthnow is an American sociologist who is widely known for his work in the sociology of religion. He is the Gerhard R. Andlinger Professor of Sociology Emeritus at Princeton University,where he is also the former chair of the Department of Sociology and director of the Princeton University Center for the Study of Religion.
Christian Stephen Smith is an American sociologist,currently the William R. Kenan Jr. Professor of Sociology at the University of Notre Dame. Smith's research focuses primarily on religion in modernity,adolescents and emerging adults,sociological theory,philosophy of science,the science of generosity,American evangelicalism,and culture. Smith is well known for his contributions to the sociology of religion,particularly his research into adolescent spirituality,as well as for his contributions to sociological theory and his advocacy of critical realism.
Carlfred Bartholomew Broderick was an American psychologist,sociologist,and family therapist,a scholar of marriage and family relations at the University of Southern California,and an author of several books. He was born in Salt Lake City,Utah,in 1932,and he died of cancer in 1999 in Cerritos,California,at the age of 67.
The marriage gap describes observed economic and political disparities in the United States between those who are married and those who are single. The marriage gap can be compared to,but should not be confused with,the gender gap. As noted by Dr. W. Bradford Wilcox,American sociologist and director of the National Marriage Project at the University of Virginia,and Wendy Wang,director of research at the Institute for Family Studies,"College-educated and more affluent Americans enjoy relatively strong and stable marriages and the economic and social benefits that flow from such marriages. By contrast,not just poor but also working-class Americans face rising rates of family instability,single parenthood,and lifelong singleness."
Arthur C. Brooks is an American author,public speaker,and academic. Since 2019,Brooks has served as the Parker Gilbert Montgomery Professor of the Practice of Nonprofit and Public Leadership at the Harvard Kennedy School and at the Harvard Business School as a Professor of Management Practice and Faculty Fellow. Previously,Brooks served as the 11th President of the American Enterprise Institute. He is the author of thirteen books,including Build the Life You Want:The Art and Science of Getting Happier with co-author Oprah Winfrey (2023),From Strength to Strength:Finding Success,Happiness and Deep Purpose in the Second Half of Life (2022),Love Your Enemies (2019),The Conservative Heart (2015),and The Road to Freedom (2012). Since 2020,he has written the Atlantic’s How to Build a Life column on happiness.
In the United States,the traditional family structure is considered a family support system involving two married individuals providing care and stability for their biological offspring. However,this two-parent,heterosexual,nuclear family has become less prevalent,and nontraditional family forms have become more common. The family is created at birth and establishes ties across generations. Those generations,the extended family of aunts and uncles,grandparents,and cousins,can hold significant emotional and economic roles for the nuclear family.
The Witherspoon Institute is a conservative think tank in Princeton,New Jersey founded in 2003 by Princeton University professor Robert P. George,Luis Tellez,and others involved with the James Madison Program in American Ideals and Institutions. Named after John Witherspoon,one of the signers of the United States Declaration of Independence,the institute's fellows include Harold James,John Joseph Haldane,and James R. Stoner,Jr.
Mark Daniel Regnerus is a sociologist and professor at the University of Texas at Austin. His main fields of interest are sexual behavior,relationship dynamics,and religion.
The New Family Structures Study is a sociological study of LGBT parenting conducted by sociologist Mark Regnerus of the University of Texas at Austin. The study surveyed over 15,000 Americans of ages 18 to 39. The first research article based on data from the study was published in July 2012 in Social Science Research,and concluded that people who had had a parent who had been in a same-gender relationship were at a greater risk of several adverse outcomes,including "being on public assistance,being unemployed,and having poorer educational attainment."
DeBoer v. Snyder is a lawsuit that was filed by April DeBoer and Jayne Rowse on January 23,2012 in federal district court,challenging Michigan's ban on adoption by same-sex couples so they can jointly adopt their children. In August 2012,Judge Bernard A. Friedman invited the couple to amend their suit to challenge the state's ban on same-sex marriage,"the underlying issue". Following a hearing on October 16,2013,Friedman scheduled a trial that ran from February 25 to March 7,2014. On March 21,Judge Friedman issued his ruling overturning the ban. On March 22,the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit placed a temporary hold on Judge Friedman's ruling. The appeal was argued on August 6. On November 6,the Sixth Circuit reversed Judge Friedman and upheld Michigan's ban on same-sex marriage.
Frank Folke Furstenberg Jr. is the Zellerbach Family Professor of Sociology,Emeritus,at the University of Pennsylvania. His research focuses on the family in the context of disadvantaged urban neighborhoods and adolescent sexual behavior. Furstenberg has written extensively on social change,transition to adulthood,divorce,remarriage and intergenerational relations. Furstenberg is an elected member of the National Academy of Medicine,American Academy of Arts and Sciences,and American Academy of Political and Social Science.
Walter R. Schumm is a professor in the Department of Family Studies and Human Services at Kansas State University. He is also the editor-in-chief of the academic journal Marriage &Family Review. Much of Schumm's research purports to find negative effects of same-sex parenting,although his work has been criticized for its methodology. In 2010,he gave "expert evidence" in a Florida court against a gay man who challenged the state's ban on LGBT adoption.
Nicholas H. Wolfinger is an American researcher,academic and educator. He is Professor in the Department of Family and Consumer Studies and Adjunct Professor of Sociology at the University of Utah. His research is focused on sociology of the family,religion,social demography and quantitative and qualitative methods.
