No Second Acts in American Lives? The State of Remarriage in the Contemporary U.S. Society

Muh-Chung Lin, University of Chicago

Remarriage is one of the most important yet neglected research topics in family sociology. Using the 2006-2008 NSFG data, this paper presents a socio-demographic profile of remarriage in the U.S. in the late 2000s. The paper provides much-needed information on the prevalence of remarriage and its socio-demographic variations, its relationship with cohabitation, related dyadic characteristics, the presence of children, and its outcomes. Results show that, despite its apparent fragility, marriage remains a vigorous institution, as remarriages continue where first ones leave off.