A former journalist with a master's degree in demography from Georgetown University and a Ph.D. in sociology from Princeton University, Margaret L. Usdansky is a demographic researcher and consultant focusing on work and family policy. Her areas of interest include the growth of single-parent families, the impact of paid and unpaid labor on parents' well-being, and gender and race-ethnic differences in young people's education and career trajectories. 

An Assistant Professor of Sociology at the Center for Policy Research at Syracuse University and a Research Associate of the Center for Research on Child Well-Being at Princeton University, Usdansky is currently studying the pursuit of scientific careers among women and minorities, a project funded by the American Educational Research Association. Her recent publications include: 

• "Depression Risk among Mothers of Young Children: The Role of Employment Preferences, Labor Force Status and Job Quality" (with co-authors, 2012, Journal of Family and Economic Issues) 
• "How Money Matters: College, Motherhood, Earnings and Wives' Housework" (with Wendy Parker, 2011, Journal of Family Issues) 
• "The Gender Equality Paradox: Social Class, Preferences and Couples' Division of Paid and Unpaid Labor" (2011, Journal of Family Theory & Review)