Marriages and Families, 10th edition

Published by Pearson (January 1, 2026) © 2027
  • Nijole V. Benokraitis
  • Karen Seccombe

Title overview

For courses in Marriage and Family.

A comprehensive introduction to the issues families face today

Marriages and Families: Changes, Choices and Constraints examines contemporary families through the lenses of the choices we make and the constraints that often limit these choices. Longtime author Nijole Benokraitis and new coauthor Karen Seccombe explore concepts via a variety of cross-cultural scenarios. Their multidisciplinary approach helps students understand the families in which they were raised as well as the families they may be forming themselves.

The 10th Edition offers updated discussions of family, parenting, relationships, decreasing marriage rates, current dating trends and more.

Hallmark features of this title

  • Data Digest infographics make current statistics more interesting and digestible.
  • Material from the authors' files, including anecdotes and classroom examples, illustrates concepts.
  • Changes features show how marriages and families have changed and may continue to change. Choices features illustrate the decisions families can make to improve their well-being. And Constraints features highlight the impact of socioeconomic, demographic and cultural factors that limit our choices.
  • Stop and Think critical thinking questions encourage students to develop their views of family life.
  • Making Connections features help students identify links between course material and their own lives.
  • Since You Asked questions introduce key concepts or preview controversial issues.

New and updated features of this title

  • NEW: For the 10th Edition, new coauthor Karen Seccombe joins longtime author Nijole Benokraitis. An established sociology scholar and author, Dr. Seccombe made valuable contributions to bring the text up to date with the latest developments in the field.
  • NEW: Our Families features illustrate individual perspectives on everyday experiences. These sections present a personal approach to topics such as alcoholism, poverty, and same-sex relationships.
  • UPDATED: The authors have revised the 10th Edition to reflect the latest in the field, with over 90% of the text's nearly 900 new references pulled from 2022 or later. Highlights of new and updated content include:
    • Updated material on women’s and men’s participation in the labor force, how the labor force is changing, and inequalities by race and sex in Chapter 4, The Economy and Family Life
    • Expanded coverage of mate selection in traditional societies, including discussions of dowry, bride price, child marriages, and consanguineous marriages in Chapter 8, Choosing Others: Dating and Mate Selection
    • Revised discussions of child support and visitation and greater attention to “repartnering,” rather than just remarriage after a divorce, in Chapter 13, Separation, Divorce, Remarriage and Stepfamilies

Table of contents

  1. The Changing Family
  2. Studying the Family
  3. Racial and Ethnic Family Diversity: Past and Present
  4. The Economy and Family Life
  5. Socialization and Gender
  6. Love and Loving Relationships
  7. Sexuality and Sexual Expression throughout Life
  8. Choosing Others: Dating and Mate Selection
  9. Singlehood and Cohabitation
  10. Marriage and Communication in Intimate Relationships
  11. Parenting: More Choices and Constraints
  12. Family Problems: Violence, Alcohol Abuse and Depression
  13. Separation, Divorce, Remarriage and Stepfamilies
  14. Families in Later Life

Author bios

About our authors

Nijole V. Benokraitis is professor emerita of sociology at the University of Baltimore. She received a B.A. in sociology and English from Emmanuel College in Boston, a master’s degree in sociology from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, and a Ph.D. in sociology from the University of Texas at Austin.

A strong proponent of applied sociology, Professor Benokraitis enlisted her students in community service activities such as tutoring low-income high school students and volunteering research services to nonprofit organizations. She has authored, co-authored, edited or co-edited almost a dozen books, including SOC (now in its 7th Edition); Affirmative Action and Equal Opportunity: Action, Inaction, Reaction; Contemporary Ethnic Families in the United States: Characteristics, Variations, and Dynamics; Feuds About Families: Conservative, Centrist, Liberal, and Feminist Perspectives; Modern Sexism: Blatant, Subtle, and Covert Discrimination; Subtle Sexism: Current Practices and Prospects for Change; and 8 editions of Seeing Ourselves: Classic, Contemporary, and Cross-Cultural Readings in Sociology. She has also published numerous articles and book chapters on topics such as institutional racism, discrimination against women in government and higher education, and family policy.

Visit Dr. Benokraitis’s website for more about her background, selected publications and contact information. She and her husband have 2 adult children and 1 grandchild.

Karen Seccombe considers herself a freelance academic these days. Over the course of her career, she has served as a professor of sociology at the University of Alaska and the University of Florida, teaching courses in family sociology, medical sociology, social stratification, and social problems. She was professor of public health at the University of Florida, teaching courses in health policy and in issues related to families and health. She has taught in the Semester at Sea program, where she traveled to Japan, China, Vietnam, Myanmar, India, South Africa, Ghana and Morocco with nearly 600 college students.

Dr. Seccombe is a proud community college graduate, acknowledging the great academic start that it provided. She received a B.A. in sociology from California State University, Chico. She also received an MSW in social welfare policy from the University of Washington and a Ph.D. in sociology from Washington State University.

Her research agenda has focused primarily on vulnerable families, especially those who are poor or lacking health insurance. She has published over 40 scientific papers in key journals in the field. She is the author of numerous books, including “So You Think I Drive a Cadillac?”; Just Don’t Get Sick; Families in Poverty; Exploring Marriages and Families(5th Edition); Families and Their Social Worlds (4th Edition); and Social Problems (16th Edition). Dr. Seccombe is a Fellow in the National Council on Family Relations.

Dr. Seccombe lives on a remote island off the coast of Washington, accessible only by a 65-minute ferry ride or small airplane. She lives with her husband, Richard; English Cream Golden Retriever, Murphy; and her cats, Winnie and Zoey. Her daughters, Natalie and Olivia, ages 24 and 22, are recent college graduates and are now off having their own adventures. In her spare time, she enjoys playing pickleball, hiking with her pack, cycling, travel, and playing more pickleball.

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