Children in one-parent families: Survival as an indicator of the role of the parents

This study tries to shed light on the way in which family characteristics a ffected the survival of children in nineteenth-century European societies. Insights from recent epidemiological studies were used to construct a frame work via which the absence or loss of one of the parents could affect the h ealth and survival of children. The review not only showed how important fa mily structure was for survival of children, it also provided insight in th e differences in the roles played by fathers and mothers and indicated that the wider kinship network is a factor that is of great relevance in studyi ng the effects of family structure on living conditions of children, Curren t research focuses on the relationship between religion, health, and mortal ity in the nineteenth and early-twentieth centuries; social-class and gende r differences in mortality; and the current social and demographic situatio n of the Jews in the Netherlands.