{"id":224549,"date":"2025-04-30T12:56:16","date_gmt":"2025-04-30T16:56:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/?post_type=short-read&p=224549"},"modified":"2025-04-30T13:32:55","modified_gmt":"2025-04-30T17:32:55","slug":"are-children-better-off-when-one-parent-has-a-job-or-when-both-do-us-teens-differ-in-their-views","status":"publish","type":"short-read","link":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/short-reads\/2025\/04\/30\/are-children-better-off-when-one-parent-has-a-job-or-when-both-do-us-teens-differ-in-their-views\/","title":{"rendered":"Are children better off when one parent has a job or when both do? U.S. teens differ in their views"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"A
A mom prepares a snack for her son while her husband works remotely from a home office. (Raquel Natalicchio\/Houston Chronicle via Getty Images)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

In the United States, 43% of teenagers say children are better off when one parent doesn\u2019t have a job and focuses on the family. A larger share (57%) say children are just as well off when both of their parents have jobs, according to a recent Pew Research Center survey of teens ages 13 to 17<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The fall 2024 survey examined teens\u2019 views on a broad range of topics, including their experiences at school<\/a>, the pressures they face<\/a>, their friendships and support networks<\/a>, and their future plans and goals<\/a>. On many of these topics, teen girls express different views from teen boys.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How we did this<\/summary>\n

Pew Research Center asked teens about their views of mothers\u2019 and fathers\u2019 division of responsibilities as part of a broader survey on teens\u2019 lives and experiences.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We surveyed 1,391 U.S. teens ages 13 to 17 from Sept. 18 to Oct. 10, 2024, through Ipsos. Ipsos recruited the teens via their parents, who were part of its KnowledgePanel<\/a>. The KnowledgePanel is a probability-based web panel recruited primarily through national, random sampling of residential addresses. The survey was weighted to be representative of U.S. teens ages 13 to 17 who live with their parents by age, gender, race and ethnicity, household income, and other categories.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here are\u00a0the\u00a0questions used for this analysis<\/a>, along with responses, and the\u00a0survey methodology<\/a>\u00ad\u00ad\u00ad.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This research was reviewed and approved by an external institutional review board (IRB), Advarra, an independent committee of experts specializing in helping to protect the rights of research participants.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This analysis also includes information from other Center surveys and analyses. Links to these sources are available in the text.<\/p>\n<\/details>\n\n\n\n

\"A<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

By contrast, teen girls and boys do not<\/em> differ significantly on whether it\u2019s better for one or both parents to have jobs. But teens\u2019 attitudes on this question vary by other demographic factors.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For example, 57% of teenagers in households that make less than $30,000 per year say children are better off when one parent doesn\u2019t have a job and focuses on the family. In contrast, 56% of teens in households making $30,000 to $74,999 and 59% in households making $75,000 or more say children are just as well off when both parents have jobs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Teenagers who identify as Republican or lean toward the GOP are also more likely than those who identify as or lean Democratic to say children are better off if one parent doesn\u2019t have a job and focuses on the family (53% vs. 34%). In turn, Democratic teens are more likely than Republican teens to say children are equally well off when both parents have jobs (65% vs. 47%).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There are differences by race and ethnicity, too:<\/p>\n\n\n\n