The Center for Family Studies was founded in 1990 at the University of
California, Riverside. In contrast to the goals of past research on families
which have been largely discipline-bound, the goals of this Center are
focused on significant advances in family theory, research and treatment
that require an interdisciplinary approach to family issues. The Center for
Family Studies was established to create an interdisciplinary context that
would be devoted to research on and dissemination of new advances in
knowledge about the contemporary family.

Families in the United States are undergoing rapid changes in structure
and composition, and there is a need to understand and document these
changes. Demographic shifts across historical time are often treated
independently of family process issues. By providing a forum for an
interdisciplinary dialogue the interplay across different levels of analysis
can be more clearly understood.

A central mission of the Center is the understanding of the role of ethnic
variation in families. The diverse population of Southern California
represents a unique opportunity to explore this issue. Our goal is to
develop a research and policy agenda for family issues as we continue
into the twenty-first century. Collaborative arrangements with other
institutions such as Childhelp USA and a variety of school districts have
been established to facilitate research and aid in defining policy priorities.
Finally, through conferences, symposia and workshops, the Center
disseminates recent advances in knowledge about families to both
scholarly and professional communities.

Carol Tomlinson-Keasey served as founding Director of the Center
(1990-1992). Ross D. Parke has served as the Center Director from 1992
to the present and Scott Coltrane has served as Associate Director since 1997.
Members of the Center are based in a large number of University of California,
Riverside departments, including anthropology, education, history, psychology,
and sociology.