Family, Relationships, and Social Life
March 15, 2023
Despite Professional Successes Many Women Still Experience Imposter Syndrome
Women in the professional world are thriving and have been pulling ahead of men for years. Confidence in job performance however, remains lower than men of their same age. Continue Reading →
February 9, 2023
From Swiping to Sexting: The Enduring Gender Divide in American Dating and Relationships
Findings from the January 2023 American Perspectives Survey
The January 2023 American Perspectives Survey sheds some light on dating preferences, experiences, and perspectives. The national survey of more than 5,000 adults age 18 and older, including nearly 800 single adults, finds that Americans have strong dating preferences when it comes to living at home, being unemployed, and smoking. Continue Reading →
January 30, 2023
Deal-Breakers and Dating Apps: Trends Redefining Romance and Relationships in America
American social and dating life has undergone a dramatic transformation in the past few years. Join AEI’s Daniel Cox as he presents findings from a nationally representative survey and moderates a panel discussion that includes the Washington Post’s Christine Emba, Pew Research Center’s Juliana Horowitz, and Ipsos’s Mallory Newall. Continue Reading →
December 20, 2022
Why Americans are Spending Less Time with Friends — And What to do About it
A full work week. Hours on housework, yard work, time spent with your kids or partner. Then there’s all the time we spend online. Where is the time for friends? Continue Reading →
December 16, 2022
Women are More Likely to Make Friends at Work than Men. Here’s Why that Matters
Research shows that the more friends we have, the less likely we are to be depressed or anxious, and work friendships boost productivity and worker retention Continue Reading →
November 18, 2022
How Hispanic Americans Think About Work and Identity
If we want to understand the evolving role of Hispanic Americans in American culture and politics, one useful on-ramp is studying Hispanics in the workplace. Continue Reading →
November 7, 2022
The Class Divide in Family Dinner
Family dinners—a once ubiquitous feature of American life shared across cultural, religious, and class lines—have disappeared in many households. Continue Reading →
October 31, 2022
The New Workplace Gender Imbalance: Social Capital and Job Satisfaction
New data suggests gender and education are the difference between liking and loving your job. But there’s a price to be paid. Continue Reading →
October 25, 2022
The Social Workplace: Social Capital, Human Dignity, and Work in America
Findings from the June 2022 American Perspectives Survey
Over the past two decades, American social and civic life has been on an undeniable downward trajectory. New research finds that the workplace remains an increasingly important generator of social capital in the wake of this civic contraction. Continue Reading →
October 24, 2022
Can Americans Find Common Ground on Abortion?
Most Americans are willing to find common ground on abortion. Continue Reading →
Generation Uncoupled
Generation Uncoupled: America's New Gender Divide and the Crisis of Human Connection
Buy NowSurvey Reports
Daniel A. Cox
July 23, 2026
A Digital Divide in American Adolescence: Gender, Class, and the New Teenage Experience
If teenage years once represented a time of rebellion, teenagers’ lives today are marked less by pushing boundaries and more by building their own. Many teenage experiences are less common than they once were—dating, working a part-time job, and experimenting with drugs and alcohol are less common experiences. The 2026 American Teenagers Survey from the Continue Reading →
Daniel A. Cox, Jae Grace, Avery Shields
April 27, 2026
Strangers Next Door: The Decline of Neighborhood Socializing and the Class Divide in Belonging
Acknowledgment The American Enterprise Institute’s Survey Center on American Life is grateful to the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation for its generous support of this research. As Americans spend more of their time online, the neighborhood—once a primary physical location for real-world socialization—is playing less of a central role than ever before. Since Continue Reading →
In the News
August 13, 2026
America’s Loneliness Trap
August 6, 2026









