An Update on Family Trends in the U.S. and Ohio Anastasia R. Snyder Department of HDFS OSU, College of Education and Human Ecology October 7, 2010

Outline and Goals Trends in family formation patterns Trends in children’s family contexts Well-being outcomes for families and children Family stability The role of educational attainment of women Aging U.S. population Goal: To understand recent family demographic trends and implications for families and children in U.S. and Ohio

Trends in Family Formation Union Formation: Delayed age at first marriage Sharp rise in non-marital cohabitation Most marriages preceded by cohabitation Childbearing Decline in fertility of married women Rise in nonmarital childbearing, especially among women in 20s and 30s 50% of these birth occur to cohabiting women

Percent of women with a nonmarital birth in the past 12 months, 2009 Source: 2009 ACS

Children’s Family Contexts Decline in two parent families in the U.S. and Ohio Corresponding rise in single parent families, most female-headed Family poverty is high among female-headed families with children Female-headed family poverty is slightly higher in Ohio Depends on type of female-headed family

Trends in Family Contexts for Children in US and Ohio: 1990-2009 2007 Pre Annual Conference In-service Day 12/11/2007 Trends in Family Contexts for Children in US and Ohio: 1990-2009 The trend both nationwide and in Ohio in the past 15 years has been a decline in the percent of married couple families with children and a rise in the percent of single parent families with children. Between 1990 and 2006 the percent of married couple families with children declined from 74.2% of all families to 69.1% of all families, which is a 5.1 percentage point decline. In Ohio the decline was from 74.7% to 66.7%, a 7.9% decline. At the same time the percent of single parent families has risen. In the US overall single parent families with children represented 30.9% of all families with children, up 5.1 percentage points from 25.8% in 1990. In Ohio single parent families with children represent a slightly larger percent of all families with children—33.3% (one third)—up from 25.4% in 1990. The trend in both Ohio and the US is away from two parent families with children and toward single parents with children. Source: U.S. Census FCS Trends Update

2007 Pre Annual Conference In-service Day 12/11/2007 Trends in Poverty for Families with Children in the U.S. and Ohio: 1990-2009 . Source: U.S. Census FCS Trends Update

Types of Female-Headed Families with Children 2009 ACS provided new information about types of female-headed families Cohabiting Headed by a grandmother Make up over 25% of female-headed families with children (26.5% in Ohio, 27% in U.S.) Poverty varies a lot depending on type of female- headed family.

Children’s Living Arrangements: Cohabiting Households in 2009 Source: 2009 ACS

Children’s Living Arrangements: Grandparent-Headed Households in 2009

Poverty Among Different Types of Female-Headed Families 2007 Pre Annual Conference In-service Day 12/11/2007 Poverty Among Different Types of Female-Headed Families Source: Snyder et al., 2006 (U.S. Census Data) FCS Trends Update

Family Stability and Child Well-Being Research is shifting focus Family Structure  Family Stability Trend toward more instability in U.S. families Results in worse child outcomes (Magnuson et al., 2009; Osborne & McLanahan, 2007; Cavanaugh & Houston, 2008; Fomby et al., 2010) Stable family structure is best for children, despite economic gains

Educational Attainment and Implications for Family Behaviors In the past 20 years, women’s educational attainment has risen while men’s has declined Educational/SES Divide: Large differences in family behavior between women with college educations and those without Nonmarital births Timing of marriage Divorce Delayed age at first marriage, lower overall fertility, rise in nonmarital fertility especially within cohabiting unions, rise in nonmarital cohabitation both before and after marriage, high and steady divorce rates, all vary by educational attainment of women. College educated women have experienced far less of the family trends associated with the second demographic transition, compared to other women

College education in 2009 by age and sex, U.S. Source: 2009 ACS, analyses are weighted (n=7,738,348)

College education in 2009 by age, sex, Ohio Source: 2009 American Community Survey

Educational Attainment of Married Couples in 1970 and 2007 (2009 Pew Research Report) 1970: 4% of husbands had wives with higher income

Percent of women divorced within 10 years of first marriage: life table estimates by education Since 1980, divorce among women with BA has declined by 20%, divorce among women with hs or some college has increased by 6%, and divorce among women with less than high school has increased by 10%

Percent of U.S. Population Age 65 and Older, 1900-2050 Source: U.S. Census, 2005

Conclusions Families in the U.S. and Ohio have continued the shift away from traditional forms toward contemporary ones Second Demographic Transition Corresponding rise in poverty, and decline in well-being Educational attainment trends are impacting families Aging population will confront complex family networks