The National Couples’ Health and Time Study (NCHAT) is the first fully-powered, population-representative study of couples in America containing large samples of sexual, gender, and racial and ethnic diverse individuals. Drawn from the Gallup Panel and the Gallup Recontact Sample, when weighted, the data are population representative of individuals in the United States who 1) are married or cohabiting, 2) are between 20 and 60, 3) speak English or Spanish, and 4) have internet access. The data were collected between September 2020 and April 2021 in the midst of a global pandemic as well as racial and political upheaval. NCHAT includes surveys of 3,642 main respondents and 1,515 partners along with time diaries. We describe the sampling process, challenges weighting a diverse population-representative samples, and sociodemographic characteristics of the NCHAT. These data will provide opportunities for new research on the health and well-being of American families.

There is both the necessity and the capacity for unification across the discipline of family science. This article offers another step toward a comprehensive, integrated body of theory and research shared across our discipline. Specifically, we address how family systems thinking has been reflected in attachment, parenting, and adolescent identity literature, and we present bidimensional models and integrated spectrums emphasizing how levels of differentiation, adolescent internal working models of attachment, parenting styles, and adolescent identity statuses are conceptually intertwined as systemic intrapsychic and interpersonal processes. These theories and concepts, when considered as an integrated whole, invite theoretical complexity that advances the understanding of family processes and guides new research questions. We propose that family systems theory is a holistic framework that is ideal for integrating these concepts in a way that goes beyond highlighting their common factors. We conclude with the benefits and barriers to comprehensive integration across family science.