The number of parents in a family household is closely related to other indicators of socioeconomic status.  For example, data from the CPS indicate that the median income of family households with two parents present is more than twice that of households headed by single females and 38 percent greater than households headed by single males. [1]   The Survey of Recruit Socioeconomic Backgrounds asks respondents to indicate the people who were in their household when they last lived with their parents, stepparents, or guardians.  Approximately 69 percent of accessions indicated that they lived with both father and mother, [2] compared with 71 percent of CPS households (Table 7.1).  Those who lived with one parent were more than three times more likely to live with their mother than with their father.  The percentage of accessions living with two parents was greater for the Air Force (72 percent) than for the other three Services (from 66 to 68 percent).  There were no other differences of consequence among the other Services, nor between active duty and Reserve Component accessions.  Overall, the family composition of enlisted accessions was quite similar to that of the civilian population. 

Table 7.1.  Parents in Family of FY 1999 NPS Recruits, by Service, with Civilian Comparison Group (Percent)
	Active Component				DoD Subtotal		Total
Adults at Home	Army	Navy	Marine Corps	Air Force	Active Duty	Guard/ Reserve	DoD	CPS
Father, Stepfather, or Male Guardian	7.1	7.7	9.1	6.0	7.4	6.5	7.2	5.2
Mother, Stepmother, or Female Guardian	24.8	26.0	23.1	22.1	24.3	24.3	24.3	23.5
Both	68.1	66.3	67.8	71.9	68.3	69.2	68.5	71.3
Source:  Civilian data from Bureau of Labor Statistics Current Population Survey File, October 1998–September 1999.

---