Research

Rachel’s research addresses family dynamics, population change and aging. Below are her research papers grouped into five topics: family dynamics and changing kin networks, the demography of grandparenthood, population health, parental benefits policies, and fertility, family and happiness.

To see the Crossnational Aging Research Lab that she and Ashton Verdery run, click here.

Family Dynamics and Changing Kin Networks

Wu, Huijing, Rachel Margolis, Sarah Patterson and Ashton M. Verdery. Forth. Changes in Family Structure and Increasing Gaps in Care in the United States 2015-2050. Demography.

Wang, Haowei, Rachel Margolis and Ashton M. Verdery. Forth. Sibling Availability, Sibling Sorting, and Subjective Health among Chinese Adults. Demography.

Sheftel, Mara Getz, Rachel Margolis, and Ashton M. Verdery. 2024. Life Events and Loneliness Transitions among Middle-Aged and Older Adults Around the World. The Journals of Gerontology Series B: Psychological Sciences and Social Sciences.

Patterson, Sarah and Rachel Margolis. 2023. Family Ties and Older Adult Well-being: Incorporating Social Networks and Proximity. The Journals of Gerontology Series B: Psychological Sciences and Social Sciences.

Wu, Huijing, Rachel Margolis, Mara Getz Sheftel, and Ashton M. Verdery. 2023. The Care Gap in Late Life Among European Countries. The Journals of Gerontology Series B: Psychological Sciences and Social Sciences.

Caswell, Hal, Rachel Margolis, and Ashton M. Verdery. 2023. A Model for Kinship Dynamics: Kin loss, bereavement and causes of death. Demographic Research.

Freedman, Vicki, et al. 2023. The Changing Demography of Late-Life Caregiving: A Research Agenda to Understand Future Care Networks for an Aging U.S. Population. The Gerontologist.

Margolis, Rachel, Xiangnan Chai, Ashton Verdery and Lauren Newmyer. 2022. The Physical, Mental and Social Health of Middle-Aged and Older Adults without Close Kin in Canada. The Journals of Gerontology Series B: Psychological Sciences and Social Sciences.

Wang, Haowei, Ashton Verdery, Rachel Margolis and Emily Smith-Greenaway. 2021. Bereavement from Covid-19, Gender, and Reports of Depression among Older Adults in Europe. The Journals of Gerontology Series B: Psychological Sciences and Social Sciences.

Kidman, Rachel, Rachel Margolis, Emily Smith-Greenaway, and Ashton M. Verdery. 2021. Estimates and Projections of Covid-19 and Parental Death in the US. JAMA Pediatrics.

Patterson, Sarah E., Rachel Margolis, and Ashton Verdery. 2020. Family Embeddedness and Older Adult Mortality. Population Studies 415-435.

Verdery, Ashton M., Emily Smith-Greenaway, Rachel Margolis, and Jonathan Daw. 2020. The Reach of COVID-19 Bereavement across Kinship Networks in the United States. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences Jul 2020, 202007476.

Margolis, Rachel and Youjin Choi. 2020. The Growing and Shifting Divorced Population in Canada. Canadian Studies in Population

Chai, Xiangnan, and Rachel Margolis. 2020. Does Living Alone Mean Spending Time Differently? Time Use and Living Arrangements among Older Canadians. Canadian Studies in Population

Margolis, Rachel, Youjin Choi, Feng Hou, and Michael Haan. 2019. Capturing Trends in Canadian Divorce in an Era without Vital Statistics. Demographic Research 41(52): 1453-78.

Patterson, Sarah E. and Rachel Margolis. 2019. Gender Differences in Multigenerational Caregiving Across the Life Course in Europe. Socius

Verdery, Ashton M., Rachel Margolis, Zhangjun Zhou, Xiangnan Chai, and Jongjit Rittirong. 2019. Kinlessness Around the World. The Journals of Gerontology Series B: Psychological Sciences and Social Sciences 74(8):1394-1405.

Zhou, Zhangjun, Ashton M. Verdery, and Rachel Margolis. 2019. No Spouse, No Son, No Daughter, No Kin in Contemporary China: Prevalence, Correlates and Differences in Economic Support. The Journals of Gerontology Series B: Psychological Sciences and Social Sciences 74(8):1453-1462.

Verdery, Ashton M., and Rachel Margolis. 2017. Projections of white and black older adults without living kin in the United States, 2015-2060. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 201710341.

Margolis, Rachel and Ashton M. Verdery. 2017. Aging alone? Older Adults without Close Kin in the United States. The Journals of Gerontology Series B: Psychological Sciences and Social Sciences 72(4): 688-693.

Margolis, Rachel and Laura Wright. 2017. Older Adults with Three Generations of Kin: Prevalence, Correlates and Transfers. The Journals of Gerontology Series B: Psychological Sciences and Social Sciences 72(6):1067-1072.

Daw, Jonathan, Ashton M. Verdery, and Rachel Margolis. 2016. Kin Count(s): Educational and Racial Differences in Extended Kin Counts in the United States. Population and Development Review 42(3):491-517.

The Demography of Grandparenthood

Livings, Michelle, Emily Smith-Greenaway, Rachel Margolis and Ashton Verdery. 2023. Lost Support, Lost Skills: Children’s cognitive outcomes following grandparental death. Social Science Research.

Smith-Greenaway, Emily, Michelle Livings, Rachel Margolis, and Ashton Verdery. 2022. Bereavement and Mental Health: The generational consequences of a grandparent’s death. Social Science & Medicine.

Margolis, Rachel and Ashton M. Verdery. 2019. A Cohort Perspective on the Demography of Grandparenthood: Past, Present, and Future Changes in Race and Sex Disparities in the United States. Demography 56(4): 1495-1518.

Margolis, Rachel and Laura Wright. 2017. Healthy Grandparenthood: How long is it and how is it changing? Demography 54(60): 2073-2099.

Margolis, Rachel. 2016. The Changing Demography of Grandparenthood. Journal of Marriage and Family 78(3): 610-622.

Margolis, Rachel and Natalie Iciaszczyk. 2015. The Changing Health of Canadian Grandparents. Canadian Studies in Population 42(3-4): 63-76.

Population Health

Zajacova, Anna and Rachel Margolis. Forth. Trends in Disability and Limitations among US Adults 18-44, 2000-2018. American Journal of Epidemiology.

Sheftel, Mara Getz, Rachel Margolis, and Ashton Verdery. 2023. Health Across Borders: A Crossnational Comparison of Immigrant Health in Europe. Population Research and Policy Review.

Wang, Haowei, Emily Smith-Greenaway, Shawn Bauldry, Rachel Margolis, and Ashton Verdery. 2022. Mourning in a Pandemic: The Differential Impact of Widowhood and Mental Health During COVID-19. The Journals of Gerontology Series B: Psychological Sciences and Social Sciences.

Newmyer, Lauren, Ashton Verdery, Haowei Wang, and Rachel Margolis. 2022. Population Aging, Demographic Metabolism, and the Rising Ride of Older Adult Loneliness Around the World. Population and Development Review.

Newmyer, Lauren, Ashton M. Verdery, Rachel Margolis, and Lea Pessin. 2020. Measuring Older Adult Loneliness across Countries. The Journals of Gerontology Series B: Psychological Sciences and Social Sciences.

Verdery, Ashton M., Lauren Newmyer, Brandon Wagner and Rachel Margolis. 2020. National Profiles of COVID-19 Mortality Risks by Age Structure and Preexisting Health Conditions. The Gerontologist

Sivakumaran, Gajan and Rachel Margolis. 2020. Self-Rated Health by Sexual Orientation Among Middle-Aged and Older Adults in Canada. The Journals of Gerontology Series B: Psychological Sciences and Social Sciences 75(8):1747-1757.

Hernandez, Elaine, Rachel Margolis, and Robert Hummer. 2018. Educational Attainment, Gender, and Health Behavior Changes after a Gateway Diagnosis. Journal of Aging and Health 30(3): 342-364.

Daw, Jonathan, Rachel Margolis, and Laura Wright. 2017. Emerging Adulthood, Emergent Health Lifestyles: Sociodemographic Determinants of Trajectories of Smoking, Binge Drinking, Obesity and Sedentary Behavior. Journal of Health and Social Behavior 58(2):181-197.

Daw, Jonathan, Rachel Margolis, and Ashton M. Verdery. 2015. Siblings, Friends, Course-mates, Club-mates: How Adolescent Health Behavior Homophily Varies by Race, Class, Gender, and Health Status. Social Science & Medicine 125:32-39.

Margolis, Rachel and Laura Wright. 2016. Better Off Alone Than With a Smoker: The Influence of Partner’s Smoking Behavior in Later Life. The Journals of Gerontology Series B: Psychological Sciences and Social Science 71(4):687-697.

Mandich, Scott and Rachel Margolis. 2014. Changes in Disability-Free Life Expectancy in Canada between 1994 and 2007. Canadian Studies in Population 41(1-2): 192-208.

Margolis, Rachel. 2013. Educational Differences in Healthy Behavior Changes and Adherence Among Middle-Aged Americans. Journal of Health and Social Behavior 54(3): 353-368.

Margolis, Rachel. 2013. Health Shocks in the Family: Gender Differences in Smoking Changes. Journal of Aging and Health 25(5): 882-903.

Margolis, Rachel. 2010. Childhood Morbidity and Health in Early Adulthood: Life course linkages in a high morbidity context. Advances in Life Course Research 15:132-146.

Parental Benefits Policies

Garon-Carrier, Gabrielle, Arya Ansari, Rachel Margolis, and Caroline Fitzpatrick. 2023. Maternal labor force participation during the child’s first year and later separation anxiety symptoms. Health Education & Behavior.

Margolis, Rachel, Youjin Choi, Anders Holm, and Nirav Mehta. 2021. The Effect of Expanded Parental Benefits on Union Dissolution. Journal of Marriage and Family 83:191-208.

Margolis, Rachel, Feng Hou, Michael Haan and Anders Holm. 2019. Use of Parental Benefits by Family Income in Canada: Two Policy Changes. Journal of Marriage and Family 81(2):450-467.

Hou, Feng, Rachel Margolis, and Michael Haan. 2017. Estimating Parental Leave in Canada Using Administrative Data: A Technical Report. Statistics Canada Analytical Studies: Methods and References.

Choi, Youjin, Anders Holm, and Rachel Margolis. 2019. The Effects of Paternity Leave on Parents’ Earning Trajectories and Earnings Inequality.

Fertility, Family, and Happiness

Clark, Shelley, Matthew Brooks, Ann-Marie Helou, and Rachel Margolis. 2024. Are Rural Areas Holdouts in the Second Demographic Transition? Evidence from Canada and the United States. Demography.

Clark, Shelley, Rachel Margolis, Cassandra Cotton, and Hans-Peter Kohler. 2020. The Psychological Benefits of Marriage and Children in Rural Malawi. Studies in Family Planning. 51(3):251-272.

Hartnett, Caroline Sten and Rachel Margolis. 2019. Births that are Later-than Desired: Correlates and Consequences. Population Research and Policy Review, 1-23.

Margolis, Rachel, and Mikko Myrskylä. 2016. Children’s Sex and the Happiness of Parents. European Journal of Population 32(3): 403-420.

Margolis, Rachel and Mikko Myrskylä. 2015. Parental Well-being Surrounding First Birth as a Determinant of Further Parity Progression. Demography 52(4):1147-1166.

Myrskylä, Mikko, and Rachel Margolis. 2014. Happiness: Before and After the Kids. Demography. 51(5):1843-1866.

Margolis, Rachel, and Mikko Myrskylä. 2013. Family, Money, and Health: Regional Differences in the Determinants of Life Satisfaction over the Life Course. Advances in Life Course Research 18(2): 115-126.

Myrskylä, Mikko, and Rachel Margolis. 2013. Parental Leave Policies Improve Parental Well-being: Evidence from a 2007 Policy Change in Germany. MPIDR Working Paper.

Margolis, Rachel, and Mikko Myrskylä. 2011. A Global Perspective on Happiness and Fertility. Population and Development Review 37(1): 29-56.