Strengthening marriage and family life through empirical research, public policy, and public education
United States
- Tweets 32,689
- Following 1,014
- Followers 14,100
- Likes 6,330
Pinned Tweet
Today, the realization of the Arizona Dream depends, in no small part, on strong families.
In a new report with the @azpolicy released today, we highlight just how much strong families matter to the fortunes of those seeking the Arizona Dream and what public policy can do to strengthen marriage and family life across the state
Read more here: ifstudies.org/blog/new-repor…
3
11
10,140
The United States just hit a forty-year low in its fertility rate, according to numbers just released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. ifstudies.org/blog/baby-bust… @lymanstoneky
68
122
156
Ron Howard's #HillbillyElegyMovie Reflects the Family Trauma and Resilience Many of Us Have Experienced ifstudies.org/blog/ron-howar… @JDVance1 @netflix
16
16
125
Of Note: @BradWilcoxIFS in The Atlantic today: "Reports of marriage’s demise are exaggerated. Rather quietly, the post-’60s family revolution appears to have ended. Divorce is down and the share of children in two-parent families is up."
theatlantic.com/magazine/arc…
5
8
88
137,133
Of Note: Sen. Lee’s age verification for apps is a straightforward, commonsense solution to a growing problem.
washingtonexaminer.com/opini…
8
14
79
36,536
A proposal to "make birth free" by a national pro-life organization. Post-Dobbs, conservatives must strongly consider such efforts.
compactmag.com/article/make-…
6
17
56
18,561
Sexless America: Young Adults Are Having Less Sex ifstudies.org/blog/sexless-a… @lymanstoneky
5
10
53
94,574
Conservative women don’t just have more children than liberal women; conservative women want more children and they’re likelier to marry, and to marry young when they can have more children.
@lymanstoneky @scottyenor
1
18
53
29,711
In memoriam to Charlie Kirk, @BradWilcoxIFS and @MariaBaerWrites reflect on one of the conservative thinker's most influential and positive messages to GenZ: "Get Married"
"Having a family will change your life in the best ways, so 'get married' & have kids. You won’t regret it."
This was perhaps Charlie Kirk's most important message to Gen Z & we're already seeing signs it may be making a difference for Gen Z men. Latest w/ @MariaBaerWrites:
2
6
54
9,638
In our culture today, “boy energy” is at best not valued and at worse demonized. ifstudies.org/blog/young-men… @PhilZimbardo @NikitaCoulombe
2
11
47
The U.S. marriage rate just hit an all-time low in 2019. ifstudies.org/blog/the-us-di… @WendyRWang
17
17
40
Girls who post videos on TikTok soon discover that their online popularity is linked to their sexuality. ifstudies.org/blog/is-tiktok… @unfragilekids
2
13
44
Of Note: Sociologist @BradWilcoxIFS Marriage is one of the strongest predictors of happiness for Americans foxnews.com/video/6337019687… #FoxNews
16
46
19,242
New research shows that possession of means still matters when it comes to marriage and family formation for men, but not for women. ifstudies.org/blog/the-ideal…
54
6
38
We are deeply saddened by the assassination of Charlie Kirk yesterday in Utah. His life gave powerful witness to the beauty, dignity, and joy of being married and having family. Our prayers are with Erika and their two children.
"My kids matter way more than how many social media followers that I have."
Charlie Kirk reflected on why having his two children is significantly more important than his career during what would be his final interview on @IngrahamAngle.
6
4
39
12,275
Our findings reveal that men and women do not hold identical attitudes about the various tasks involved in managing a home and raising children. ifstudies.org/blog/equal-not…
11
11
37
Family helped the U.S. Surgeon General when he was lonely. But for some reason his new anti-loneliness campaign omits family as a solution. ifstudies.org/blog/why-are-w… @Dalrymple
3
17
34
13,304
The increases in mental health issues among teens predate the pandemic by years—and in fact, some mental health indicators didn’t change at all between 2019 and 2020. ifstudies.org/blog/how-much-… @jean_twenge
6
18
33
The Family Housing Gap 🚪👶: "Family-friendly apartments are in short supply around the country, not least because almost none are being built." @bobbyfijan @lymanstoneky
1
7
35
59,764
Andrew Tate is wrong about men and marriage.
"The idea that marriage will end in failure half the time or more is out-of-date.
The proportion of first marriages expected to end in divorce has fallen to about 40 percent in recent years"
@BradWilcoxIFS writes in @TheAtlantic
7
1
34
239,217
What a culture says about having children has extraordinary power; something antinatalists understand well, but pronatalists have barely begun to grasp. ifstudies.org/blog/how-to-th… @MoreBirths
2
7
34
33,500
👶📦 “Home size influences fertility decisions”
The report reveals a striking correlation: married women in 2- or 3-bedroom apartments often have higher fertility rates than those in smaller apartments.
💬 “If you want to support family formation, building more family-friendly units may make a real difference.”
1
11
33
13,448
The distribution of promiscuity is skewed to the right: most people have only a few partners, but a few people have a whole lot. ifstudies.org/blog/number-8-… @NickWolfinger
4
12
29
Married men (ages 18-55) in America are about twice as likely to be very happy, compared to their unmarried peers. ifstudies.org/blog/who-is-ha… @BradWilcoxIFS @WendyRWang
2
7
30
2,445
The share of married men and women ages 18-55 saying their marriage is in trouble declined from 40% in 2019 to 29% in 2020. ifstudies.org/blog/the-good-… @WilcoxNMP @WendyRWang @lymanstoneky
2
9
31
"We have so many bad people, so many bad philosophies, ideologies, er politics… His was basically just good: family. He’d talk about family, he talked about “get married,” “go get married,” you know, sounds so old fashioned when you think about it but he’s right, he was just, he was just on."—President Donald J. Trump talking about Charlie Kirk
@foxandfriends September 12, 2025
We are deeply saddened by the assassination of Charlie Kirk yesterday in Utah. His life gave powerful witness to the beauty, dignity, and joy of being married and having family. Our prayers are with Erika and their two children.
1
4
28
13,929
🇺🇸 Marriage as Mission: "But one of his most profound contributions to the Gen Z imagination was the example he set, in word and deed, as a husband and father—and as a man who relished those roles." writes @BradWilcoxIFS and Maria Baer
Today marks 4 years of being married to @MrsErikaKirk. Second to following Jesus, it's the best decision I've ever made. She is bold, smart, loyal, and beautiful.
Happy anniversary, Erika. I love you.
1
4
30
4,382
Of Note: Toxic masculinity is a harmful myth. Society is in denial about the problems of boys and men @RichardvReeves
bigthink.com/the-present/tox…
2
11
26
When men have power to influence their mate options, they tend to use that power to find a peer-age woman for companionship in life. ifstudies.org/blog/high-stat… @lymanstoneky
4
5
27
5,410
Two groups of female respondents—college-educated women in their 20s and, especially, women over age 35—are most likely to be stakeholders in the sex recession. ifstudies.org/blog/contours-… @NickWolfinger
3
11
23
🏠 Bedrooms > square-feet.
Young Americans who want kids prefer apartments with more rooms—not just more space. It’s a strong signal for family-friendly housing design. @lymanstoneky @bobbyfijan
2
5
28
4,108
Young people are much less honest and self controlled than they were just a decade ago. They are also more neurotic, distracted, and careless. @unfragilekids
1
7
25
2,653
New: Using the Survey of Income and Program Participation (SIPP), we found that new marriages are stronger today than in every decade since the 1950s. @grantjbailey @lymanstoneky @BradWilcoxIFS
2
7
27
4,831
Great advice from Dignity author @Chris_arnade
"Before you judge anybody, especially another group, walk a mile in their shoes or sit down with them at McDonald's." ifstudies.org/blog/chris-arn…
8
22
Using the SIPP, we estimate that just 15% of marriages formed between 2010 and 2012 were divorced after 10 years. ifstudies.org/blog/divorce-i… @grantjbailey @lymanstoneky @BradWilcoxIFS
5
8
26
3,974
Utah is the #1 state in the U.S. 🇺🇸
Social capital is not created by government. It is created in our families, our congregations, in our neighborhoods, and volunteer organizations. ifstudies.org/blog/the-secre… @GovCox
5
6
25
6,772
"The overall rise in White mortality is limited almost exclusively to those who are not married, for men and women."
Source: osf.io/preprints/socarxiv/83…
4
12
17
May she rest in peace. Justice #RuthBaderGinsburg—an Ambassador for Marriage ifstudies.org/blog/justice-r…
3
3
22
Cut the data however you like, use whatever indicator floats your boat, and you’ll find the ship of American fertility sinking, steadily underperforming what women have been saying they want or intend. ifstudies.org/blog/how-many-… @lymanstoneky
3
14
22
🇺🇸 Charlie Kirk's Family First Legacy
✒️ "It’s possible that Kirk is directly responsible for rebranding marriage and family life as positives for young men." @BradWilcoxIFS @MariaBaerWrites
3
5
25
2,162
Men should ignore the Red Pill Right and get married. ifstudies.org/blog/no-marria… @BradWilcoxIFS
16
2
20
30,806
A new UK study finds that most people who are unhappily married end up happy if they stick it out. family-studies.org/should-co… @harrybenson6
22
21
‘They’re Out to Get You’: Police Misconduct in White, Working-Class America ifstudies.org/blog/theyre-ou… @DavidLappOH
7
20
Of Note: @PTBwrites : Trump Should Make Birth—Not IVF—Free compactmag.com/article/trump…
2
4
22
3,041
#Marriage is under attack from both the political left and right.
But the importance of marriage has never been greater.
@BradWilcoxIFS explains why the message of his new book, "Get Married," is so important for today's young people.
7
21
2,301
The reason France’s population is still growing today rather than staying stagnant or shrinking is because of the pronatal policies of the past. ifstudies.org/blog/does-pron… @lymanstoneky
3
6
19
16,015
"Opposition to the moratorium is bipartisan, transcends income brackets, and unites all age groups, our poll found. But none are so overwhelmingly against it as people between from age 18 to 34, who oppose the moratorium by an incredible margin of 7 to 1, with 70 percent against it and a mere 10 percent in support."
Michael Toscano @FamStudies and @jareddhayden explore why young people so strongly oppose the A.I. moratorium.
compactmag.com/article/young…
15
21
3,897
Sexual orientation has changed a lot more than sexual behavior over the past decade. ifstudies.org/blog/bisexual-… @NickWolfinger
11
22
5,497
Want to know how to raise kids in a high tech world? One idea is to have no devices in the bedroom, writes @jean_twenge for @famstudies suggesting it is the simplest yet most powerful screen-time rule. An excerpt from her latest book.
1
4
18
3,770
Even though family instability is less stigmatized than it once was, this research brief indicates that the power of being raised by stably married parents is only increasing. ifstudies.org/blog/strong-fa… @BradWilcoxIFS
7
20
💍 “Marriage, Babies & Ballots
"Married women have substantially more children than unmarried women, and conservative women are much more likely to be married at every age."
@scottyenor @lymanstoneky
1
8
21
2,211
The Pornography Industry Should Not Be Allowed This Much Access to Our Children ifstudies.org/blog/the-porno… @DrJasonCarroll @drbrian_relate @BradWilcoxIFS Michael Toscano
6
20
3,981
"Over at @TheAtlantic, @WilcoxNMP & @lymanstoneky have penned a fascinating piece exploring the roots of American unhappiness and tying it our nation’s 'sex recession'—a rather marked decrease in sexual activity by young adults." @DavidAFrench nationalreview.com/corner/it… @FamStudies
1
8
20
Five Facts About Teen Mental Health and Screens: @jean_twenge Responds to Anya Kamenetz ifstudies.org/blog/five-fact…
10
21
🧠 “Men and women alike overwhelmingly prefer a partner with fewer past sexual partners.”
❤️ Stability & exclusivity remain highly valued in mate selection.
2
2
21
3,724
💑 Who’s the happiest? Married parents, data show.
"Marriage and parenthood do not appear to be obstacles to living a happy life. Instead, these two traditional markers of adulthood are associated with a happier life."
3
9
21
3,506
Please Don’t Hide Your Happy Marriage @AliEWentworth
ifstudies.org/blog/please-do… @AlysseElHage
2
10
21
“Marriage is largely absent from public housing. What we see is a kind of “marriage desert” with very few married adults and married families in public housing.” @BradWilcoxIFS speaking @HUDgov
1
7
20
6,574
In 2020, 1-in-6 women reaching the end of their childbearing years had never given birth, per a new Institute for Family Studies research brief. ifstudies.org/blog/shrinking… @WendyRWang
1
5
13
Cash-for-kids works. It is relatively cost-effective, and its fertility effects help families achieve their own stated family goals. ifstudies.org/blog/the-prona… @lymanstoneky
1
5
20
6,180
Healthy masculinity is found in men who exhibit self-control, wisdom, patience, courage, honesty, kindness, gentleness, grit, adventure, and love. ifstudies.org/blog/making-bo… @DelanoSquires
12
18
Conscientiousness is declining among young Americans, and ""As a society, we are failing to teach young people to be honest and self-controlled—and to persevere” writes @unfragilekids
2
4
19
3,495
Declining fertility is making our politics redder: on average, states won by Clinton in 2016 are missing 9% of their expected births, whereas states Trump won are missing just 7.8%. ifstudies.org/blog/baby-bust… @lymanstoneky
6
3
13
Virginia public schools spend over $13,000 per student a year. At least some of that funding should follow the child to wherever they receive an education. ifstudies.org/blog/virginia-… @DeAngelisCorey
3
17
The view that parenting is demanding is a bigger factor for low fertility in Canada than housing or child care costs. ifstudies.org/blog/why-canad… @lymanstoneky
2
9
16
6,895
Of Note: "The gametic definition matters in science. It’s the only one that applies across all sexually reproducing species. It is indispensable in evolutionary biology, medicine, and public health." @hoovlet
aei.org/articles/there-are-o…
2
18
1,656
🏠 The family home is changing — for many, it’s now an apartment.
"Though most Americans don’t envision raising a family in an apartment in the long run, it is important to make apartments as family friendly as possible." @lymanstoneky @bobbyfijan
3
11
18
9,793
Conservatives have happier families but are more pessimistic about families nationwide. ifstudies.org/blog/conservat… @WendyRWang @WilcoxNMP
1
7
16
"Newlywed” happiness boosts are very clear, but even in the longer run, it seems like being married is associated with a person being happier than before marriage. ifstudies.org/blog/number-6-…
@lymanstoneky
6
14
6,035
We join with our Latter-day Saints friends and colleagues who are mourning, alongside those families affected directly, by yesterday's tragic shooting at the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints chapel in Grand Blanc Township, Michigan.
1
18
1,849
The Institute for Family Studies will host Senior Fellow and Director of the IFS Pronatalism Initiative, Lyman Stone (@lymanstoneky), for a live interview event at our Charlottesville, VA office on Thursday November 14, 2024, at 6.30pm.
"The Future is Family"
DM for details.
ICYMI: @VivekGRamaswamy describes the declining birth rate in the United States as a big problem ignored by politicians of both parties, in a podcast with IFS Pronatalism Initiative Director @lymanstoneky piped.video/watch?v=youtube.…
4
19
11,761
Marital quality better predicts men and women’s global happiness than education, money or job satisfaction.
ifstudies.org/blog/the-closi… @BradWilcoxIFS
3
18
1,919
Young men who did not grow up with their father in the home are about twice as likely to have spent time in jail by around age 30. ifstudies.org/blog/life-with… #FathersDay2022
2
6
18
Drug deaths have risen almost continuously for more than 20 years, though the mix of substances involved has shifted. Overdoses shot up especially during the pandemic. ifstudies.org/blog/the-drug-… @RAVerBruggen
5
17
Married mothers are nearly twice as likely as their single and childless counterparts to report being “very happy,” per our new report by @jean_twenge @WendyRWang @BradWilcoxIFS @BYUWheatley
1
8
18
1,911
In both Russia and Ukraine, the population of potential soldiers is in decline. ifstudies.org/blog/the-demog… @lymanstoneky
1
5
15
Of Note: "Children’s needs have not changed just because adult desires have grown more unruly." firstthings.com/article/2024… @moveincircles
2
4
17
3,058
A ‘marriage divide’ has opened up in America, but there are policies that can help to bridge it. ifstudies.org/blog/the-benef… @BradWilcoxIFS @chrisbullivant
1
9
15
🏗️ “Apartment boom = kids left behind?”
New apartments are getting smaller and less family-friendly.
Policymakers, should build apartments that are more functional for families writes @lymanstoneky and @bobbyfijan
2
5
18
16,432
Our fourth most popular blog post of 2019 is @bbhippopotamus Let’s Stop Blaming Men for Divorce: A Response to @harrybenson6 ifstudies.org/blog/number-4-…
4
16
📈 About That “Marriage Advantage”
This protective effect isn't just real—it’s growing. This article says the “marriage advantage … has grown significantly over the past decade,” driven by rising suicide risk among the unmarried.
2
4
18
2,865
In Another Life Is Possible, I see a different vision of hospitality, what @TheBruderhof member Norann Voll calls “inconvenient hospitality.” ifstudies.org/blog/after-pan… @AmberLappOH
@100YearsBook
4
17
Father absence seemed to create more uncertainty for emerging adult women in our study, with many saying they were not sure what to expect in romantic relationships. ifstudies.org/blog/how-fathe… @dscottsibley @K_Granger_
1
8
18
The share of men who cheat is down, women's rates remain stable
New research by @WendyRWang suggests that historic trends have reversed: women are now likelier to cheat than men!
1
1
18
4,515
For Most Couples Who Stay the Course, Marriage Gets Better With Time: An Interview with Paul R. Amato ifstudies.org/blog/for-most-… @AlysseElHage
2
13
17
The Pursuit of Happiness Starts With Families: A Conversation Between @BradWilcoxIFS and @GovCox ifstudies.org/blog/the-pursu…
11
4
18
18,342
Of Note: The best thing a poor father can do for his children is be married to their mother washex.am/3zO6XMJ @TPCarney @BradWilcoxIFS
1
4
14
The claim that falling fertility is mainly about declining teen pregnancy is not only absurd but wrong. ifstudies.org/blog/the-us-fe… @lymanstoneky
2
3
15
21,378
Marriage Matters: the Left continues to deny the importance of matrimony to escaping poverty ifstudies.org/blog/marriage-… @WilcoxNMP @FamStudies
1
20
16
It’s a deeply patriotic act to serve our own families, nurture other families, and champion policies that buoy all American families. @dandarling
1
3
17
6,526
The WSJ’s portrayal of the delicate work-life balance as “girlbossing” is something of an insult to the majority of mothers who work at least part-time in some industry. @emzanotti
3
1
17
5,726
📊 GOP Counties Are Having More Babies
"Republicans live in areas where families are larger, and where more voters would directly benefit from policies like the Child Tax Credit" writes @grantjbailey @lymanstoneky
2
3
15
2,567