clearly shown that divorce and out-of-wedlock childbearing do substantially reduce the income of custodial parents relative to what it would be if they were married. A number of factors create this situation. Among them is that many noncustodial fathers do not pay adequate child support.

The absence of a parent also leads to lower access to parental resources . Fathers who live in separate households see their children less frequently. Interacting with a former spouse and maintaining a relationship with a child who lives in another household can be very difficult and painful. Many fathers respond by reducing the amount of time they spend with their children or disengaging completely (Wallerstein and Kelly, 1980). Family disruption also alters the mother-child relationship. Most single mothers are forced to fill multiple roles simultaneously, without adequate support. Some experience high levels of stress and become anxious and depressed (McLoyd and Wilson, 1991; McLeod and Shanahan, 1993; Hetherington et al., 1978). This can lead to inconsistent and ineffective parenting.

Finally, residing in a one-parent family can lower access to community resources. This occurs partially through income: families with more income can afford to live in communities with better facilities, such as day-care centers, schools, parks, and community centers. Another reason for the connection between family structure and community resources is the higher residential and geographical mobility of children with divorced and separated parents relative to those with two parents (McLanahan, 1983; Haveman et al., 1991; Speare and Goldscheider, 1987). When parents and children live in a community for a long time, they develop close ties that provide emotional support, as well as information about the broader community. When a family moves from town to town or from neighborhood to neighborhood, these ties are undermined and often destroyed.

In sum, then, research suggests that family structure affects the economic, parental, and community resources available to children. The availability of these resources in turn affects direct measures of child and later adult well-being, such as social and emotional adjustment, educational attainment, family formation, and labor force participation.

The data from the census do not allow us to examine in a careful manner the impact of residing in a single-parent family on the economic, parental, and community resources available to children. If, however, living with two parents is an advantage for children, then American Indians are less likely on average to have this advantage.