Our Top 10 Blog Posts of 2018

Though it’s hard to believe, Christmas is just a few days away, and soon we'll be saying goodbye to 2018 and celebrating a new year. Once again, we are marking the end of 2018 by counting down the 10 most popular articles we published on the Institute for Family Studies blog this year. As you will see from the list below, sexual behavior, babies, and Jordan Peterson were among the most popular topics we covered in 2018, and some of our writers made the list more than once or even twice. Similar to last year, we will be reposting each of the following blog posts beginning next week and through the end of the year (with the exception of Christmas day). We hope you enjoy reading and sharing these articles again!

10. Leonard Sax, “Of Boys and Toys” (May 2018)
Psychologist and popular parenting expert Dr. Leonard Sax responded to a controversial article in The New York Times about a new line of dolls for boys that supposedly help boys become more empathetic. 

9. Lyman Stone, “One Way to Boost Fertility: Babysit Other People’s Kids” (January 2018)
IFS research fellow Lyman Stone made a demographic, economic, and moral case for why we should babysit other people’s kids.

8. Nicholas H. Wolfinger, “Promiscuous America: Smart, Secular, and Somewhat Less Happy” (April 2018)
University of Utah sociologist Nicholas H. Wolfinger used General Social Survey data to provide a statistical portrait of the most promiscuous Americans.

7. Ashley McGuire, “What Jordan Peterson Has to Say About Motherhood Might Surprise You” (March 2018)
In the first of two posts about popular Canadian psychology professor Jordan Peterson, Ashley McGuire explained how Peterson’s traditional views on motherhood have helped him attract a large following of 30-something moms.

6. Lyman Stone, “Is Hungary Experiencing a Policy-Induced Baby Boom?” (July 2018)
Lyman Stone considered whether a handful of fertility-friendly policy changes in Hungary are at least partially responsible for the country’s recent fertility gains.

5. Ashley McGuire, “Jordan Peterson’s Radical Take on Marriage” (February 2018)
In her second appearance on the top 10 this year, Ashley McGuire highlighted Jordan Peterson’s very traditional but controversial views on marriage that have helped increase his fan base.

4. George Hawley, “The Demography of the Alt-Right” (August 2018)
In one of our most-read research briefs of 2018, University of Alabama political science professor George Hawley provided a statistical portrait of the attitudes and traits of Americans who identify with the ideology of the “Alt-Right.”

3. Lyman Stone, “Male Sexlessness is Rising But Not For the Reasons Incels Claim” (May 2018)
Our third most popular blog post of the year, Lyman Stone explored the link between the increase in sexless males (or “incels”) and the delay of marriage.

2. Lyman Stone, “Baby Bust: Fertility is Declining the Most Among Minority Women” (May 2018)
In his fourth appearance on our top 10 list and his most popular IFS blog of 2018, Lyman Stone showed that minority women in American are experiencing the greatest fertility declines. 

1. Wendy Wang, “Who Cheats More? The Demographics of Infidelity in America” (January 2018)
With nearly 500,000 page views and counting, IFS research director Wendy Wang’s demographic portrait of cheating Americans was by far our most popular blog of 2018. 

A special thanks to the writers who made the top 10 list this year. These writers, along with our many other regular and guest contributors, helped the Family Studies blog reach a new milestone of averaging over 160,000 page views a month! As we look forward to what a new year will bring, we are especially grateful for all of our writers and our long-time and new readers whose support enables the Institute for Family Studies to continue promoting strong families and sustainable communities.