- The Future of Children -

 - The Future of Children -: Parental mental health is also an important influence on child well-being, and one that differs across family types. Single mothers report more depression and psychological problems than married mothers and undoubtedly function less well as parents as a result.9 Cohabiting mothers have also been found to suffer more from depression than married mothers, which again would directly interfere with their ability to display good parenting skills.10 It is important to note that these differences may be the result of these mothers' living situation or may reflect pre-existing differences between the types of women who have children out of wedlock rather than in marriage (as we discuss in the section on selection below).11