VINDICATED! PROF MARK REGNERUS AND THE STUDY THE BULLIES TRIED TO BURY Dear marriage supporter, In 2025, two Cornell sociologists published a Cambridge University Press chapter that revisits the most contested same-sex parenting study of the last decade, and re-runs it across 2.6 million model specifications. That publication was not a blog post. It was an exhaustive robustness check. It matters because for 13 years, activists insisted the study was not merely ‘wrong’, but beyond the pale. Professor Mark Regnerus (University of Texas at Austin) sat down with me to discuss what actually happened, what the re-check shows, and why marriage still matters. Prof Mark Regnerus interview A central thread was his 2012 New Family Structures Study (NFSS), published in Social Science Research. It compared adult outcomes across family backgrounds, including respondents who reported that their mother or father had been in a same-sex romantic relationship. The study is not a clean test of children raised from birth to adulthood by a stable same-sex couple, and that limitation is worth stating upfront. Even so, its results challenged the public claim that there are simply “no differences”. Here is what the NFSS reported when comparing respondents from an intact biological mother-father family with those in the “lesbian mother” category. Several adverse indicators were far higher in the latter group. For example, “Currently on public assistance” was 38% versus 10%. “Currently unemployed” was 28% versus 8%. “Currently employed full-time” was 26% versus 49%. “Family received welfare growing up” was 69% versus 17%. The response to those findings was not a calm methodological dispute. A complaint alleged scientific misconduct and demanded institutional sanctions. The University of Texas at Austin conducted an inquiry and concluded that “no formal investigation is warranted”. That matters because it separates two issues that are often blurred on purpose: disagreement over methods versus allegations of wrongdoing. On the wrongdoing claim, the university’s answer was clear. There was none. More recently, the underlying results have been re-checked in a way that is hard to dismiss as one person’s modelling choices. A 2025 Cambridge University Press chapter by Cornell sociologists Cristobal Young and Erin Cumberworth revisits the Regnerus study and the key critics using a large “multiverse” approach, examining robustness across 2.6 million model specifications. This is why it is fair to say that, after 13 years, his work has been cleared on process and rigorously re-tested on substance. The bigger lesson is about incentives. ‘Loud’ is not the same as ‘right’, and reputational attacks can travel further than careful re-analysis. Regnerus is not alone. Dr D. Paul Sullins (sociology researcher at the Catholic University of America) has also published contested findings on outcomes for children with same-sex parents, which he has vigorously defended. Like Regnerus, his work has drawn sharp criticism, including the above journal exchanges around his paper on depression outcomes using US longitudinal data. So where does marriage fit in? The NFSS benchmark group was explicitly the most stable family structure: intact biological mother and father. That is not incidental. It underlines why marriage still matters as the gold-standard framework for raising children, and why the attempt to treat all family forms as interchangeable is not a harmless cultural preference. One final point. When ideological activists are proven wrong, the correction rarely travels as far as the accusation. The quiet, resilient researchers who refuse to bend can emerge vindicated, but only after years of stress, smears, and professional risk. Too often, the process is the punishment. That’s another reason why Coalition for Marriage matters. C4M will keep standing up and speaking out for those wrongly victimised for stating evidence-based truths about family life, and for everyone who wants the freedom to promote the benefits of real marriage without intimidation. We’re here to ensure that the truth about real marriage travels further than the smear. If you’re not already supporting C4M financially but would like to help, please click the donate button at http://www.c4m.org.uk Dr Tony Rucinski https://www.facebook.com/coalition4marriage/

What can data and social science tell us about the future of marriage in America? Among people of faith? And what can we do about it? Are there data-tested methods for strengthening marriages and sparking marriage revivals in our communities? Learn from leading experts and practitioners. Featuring: Mark Regnerus, University of Texas at Austin, President of the Austin Institute for the Study of Family & Culture Website: stthom.edu/cfc

Dr. Mark Regnerus, President of The Austin Institute and Professor of Sociology at the University of Texas at Austin, delivers the last talk at the Austin Institute 10th Anniversary Celebration.

The Future of Christian Marriage https://www.amazon.com/Future-Christian-Marriage-Mark-Regnerus/dp/0190064935 Cheap Sex: The Transformation of Men, Marriage, and Monogamy https://www.amazon.com/Cheap-Sex-Transformation-Marriage-Monogamy-dp-0190673613/dp/0190673613/ref=mt_other?_encoding=UTF8&me=&qid= The Good Enough Marriage https://www.firstthings.com/web-exclusives/2014/12/the-good-enough-marriage-1 Connect with Mark at: https://www.markregnerus.com/ Are young adults leaning toward or away from marriage? How have views towards marriage changed? Marriage rates have gone down, but expectations have gone up. Mark Regnerus is a UT sociologist and researcher. He will explain what motivates the Millennial and Gen Z generation when it comes to their relationships. Find out how the Christian community can help overcome the destructive influences of the Cheap Sex culture, foster a marriage-friendly atmosphere and provide opportunities for young adults to witness good marriages to cast vision for their future. "Marriage is good, and it works" says Mark. But the counsel parents give to their kids to delay marriage, may not be serving the next generation well. Learn more about the obstacles these young adults face, including how the dating market has changed, contributing factors that impact a person's view on marriage, learned behaviors, and shifts in cultural expectations. Explore these powerfully-researched facts, and learn how your church can foster a marriage-friendly atmosphere, as well as making a difference in the future of dating... and marriage, for this new generation. Learn more at Marriage Resources: https://marriageresources.org/authors/mark-regnerus/

“We’re talking about what was long understood as the most elemental—and therefore, expected and commonplace—aspects of human social life. But all of these indicators have slipped. And the young are increasingly stressed and depressed.” Dr. Mark Regnerus speaks at the Conference for the State of The Family in Italy and USA, hosted in Rome, Italy by The Centro Studi Rosario Livatino. He covers the declining rates of marriage and family formation throughout the world, pointing to the impacts of culture and technology as the primary forces behind the increasingly low numbers. Dr. Regnerus takes a critical look at the modern perceptions of young people regarding marriage and its economic aspect, observing the trend that marriage is now perceived as more of an achievement for the accomplished than a foundation for life. Ultimately, Dr. Regnerus proposes a return to cultural institutions for solutions to the serious issues our world faces in regards to the cornerstone of our society, the family.

On this week’s episode, Mark Regnerus joins She Thinks to help us explore the latest data showing the long-term decline in fertility, both in the U.S. and abroad. Some say that this is largely due to women choosing a career over motherhood, but does that paint the full picture? Mark and Beverly explore the many reasons why women aren’t having as many kids (or any kids at all) and what this means for them as well as for society at large. Mark Regnerus is a professor of sociology at the University of Texas at Austin and a senior fellow at the Austin Institute for the Study of Family and Culture. The author of four books from Oxford University Press and more than 40 articles in peer-reviewed journals, his research and scholarly essays have appeared in media outlets as diverse as Slate and First Things. -- Independent Women’s Forum (IWF) believes all issues are women’s issues. IWF promotes policies that aren’t just well-intended, but actually enhance people’s freedoms, opportunities, and well-being. IWF doesn’t just talk about problems. We identify solutions and take them straight to the playmakers and policy creators. And, as a 501(c)3, IWF educates the public about the most important topics of the day. Check out the Independent Women’s Forum website for more information on how policies impact you, your loved ones, and your community: www.iwf.org. Be sure to subscribe to our email and text alerts to stay up-to-date with the latest information from Independent Women's Forum and be the first to know about engagement opportunities, events, and policy updates: https://www.iwf.org/connect/ Subscribe to IWF’s YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/IWF06. Follow IWF on social media: - https://twitter.com/iwf on Twitter - https://www.facebook.com/independentwomensforum on Facebook - https://instagram.com/independentwomensforum on Instagram #IWF #AllIssuesAreWomensIssues

Guestsplaining 039: Professor Mark Regnerus on Christian Marriage Join Fr. Bonaventure Chapman as he discusses the books Cheap Sex and Christian Marriage with Catholic Sociologist Prof. Mark Regnerus. Subscribe to our channel https://www.youtube.com/c/Godsplainin... Support the Podcast Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/godsplaining Shop our store: https://godsplaining.bigcartel.com/ Shop Books Written by the Friars St. Dominic's Way of Life: https://www.amazon.com/Saint-Dominics... Prudence: Choose Confidently, Live Boldly: https://www.amazon.com/Prudence-Choos... Connect on Social Media Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/godsplaining/ Like us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/godsplaining... Follow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/godsplaining To learn more about the Province of St. Joseph visit: www.opeast.org To support the Province of St. Joseph visit: www.dominicanfriars.org #catholicpodcast #catholic #Godsplainingcatholicpodcast

Dear Marriage Supporter, Professor Mark Regnerus has published research on ‘The Future of Christian Marriage’ in a book with the same title. He says his findings apply to marriage more widely in society. I spoke to him about what he discovered, and what we can do about it. You can listen to our full discussion here. He observes how the general approach to marriage has changed from being a cornerstone (something couples build their lives on), to a capstone (something they might seek later in life). Yet his research shows most people still aspire to marry. That’s because, according to Prof Regnerus, most people know that marriage is not primarily about “love” – people can love without marriage. He says marriage is about adding to love the things that only marriage brings and one of the sad things about today’s emphasis on same-sex ‘marriage’ is the focus on the erotic. It undermines what marriage is. “At the core of it”, he goes on, same-sex marriage can only “mimic” marriage. The state must return to recognising that “the fundamental cell of society is the family” and not the individual or their desires. He encourages us to get involved in promoting marriage and in keeping our own marriages healthy. To do this, he recommends guarding against negative impacts of social and conventional media: “you have to turn the app mentality off”. We should promote “exemplary stories” about marriage, knowing that we’re seeking to “preserve things that are fundamentally good”. We should make our homes a haven so that children can see the benefits of stable marriages as they grow. Churches and wider society should teach more about the benefits of marriage, and make available pre and post marriage advice. Marriage, Prof Regnerus says, “will right itself over time”. He concludes by asking: “Do you want to be part of that process, or do you want to be mistaken and regretful for having endorsed the spirit of the age?” At C4M, we promote marriage because it is the fundamental building block for society. We know that real marriage leads to happier and healthier adults, gives children the best chances in life, and results in economic prosperity. No other relationship type comes close. It’s about time our politicians and media promoted in public what they know and do in private. If you would like to support us financially, you can do so using the Donate button on our website at http://www.c4m.org.uk Tony Rucinski https://www.facebook.com/coalition4marriage/

Dr. Regnerus discusses the science behind current issues around gender identity, such as affirmative care and the rise of gender dysphoria among youth. Especially in the United States, medical research has been affected by external political pressure and predetermined conclusions. Dr. Regnerus challenges what so much of culture is telling us to believe and encourages us to talk about these issues.