1. Introduction -- Background -- Family and Household Demography -- Summary Comparisons -- The Rest of the Book -- 2. The Complex Household -- Measuring Household Complexity -- Latin America -- Life-Course Factors -- Summary and Discussion -- 3. Nonfamily Living -- Nonfamily Living in the Western Family -- Nonfamily Living in Latin America -- How Different Measures Deal with Nonfamily Living -- Summary and Discussion -- 4. Household Arrangements of Children -- Latin America -- Summary and Discussion -- 5. Household Arrangements of Young Adults -- Latin America -- Summary and Discussion -- 6. Household Arrangements of the Middle Aged -- Latin America -- Summary and Discussion -- 7. Household Arrangements of Older People -- Latin America -- Summary and Discussion -- 8. Conclusion -- Data Sources for Observing Household Composition -- The Role of Descriptive and Analytic Studies of the Household -- Conclusion -- Variables -- Age -- Marital Status -- Generation -- Urban/Rural -- Education -- Mother-Child and Couple Links -- De Facto or De Jure? -- References.

Susan M. De Vos uses comparative and life course perspectives to provide an in-depth demographic study of the household. Based on data gathered by the World Fertility Survey, this illuminating reference explores household composition in six Latin American countries and compares the situation with that in the United States and western Europe as well as with each other. The study examines the complex household; non-family household living; and the living arrangements of children, young adults, middle-aged people, and elderly people.