© 2005 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. Chapter 4 Being Single Preview

© 2005 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. Chapter Preview Preview

© 2005 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. Topics  Reasons for being single  Singles’ health  Living arrangements  Sexual behavior  Employment and income  Single parents  Older never-married singles

© 2005 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. Guided Learning Process  1 st : Question  2 nd : Study  3 rd : Mark  4 th : Question again  5 th : Recite  6 th : Check  7 th : Restudy if necessary Preview

© 2005 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. Text Assignment Preview

© 2005 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. Chapter Questions  What are the basic characteristics of single people in this country?  Why do people wait until they are older to get married?  Why do some people never marry? Preview

© 2005 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. Chapter Questions  What do people like and dislike about being single?  Is it healthy to be single?  Do most single people live alone? Preview

© 2005 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. Chapter Questions  What are people doing sexually and with whom are they doing it?  Do people earn more money if they are married or if they are single?  How is single parenting changing?  How happy are adults who have never been married?

© 2005 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. Special Sections Preview SS

© 2005 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. Personal Perspective: Single Fatherhood What is it like to be a single father? Preview PP

© 2005 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. Cultural Perspectives: African American Single Mothers How is being a single mother different for African Americans? Preview CP

© 2005 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. At Issue Today: Friends with Benefits How do some single adults meet their sexual needs? Preview AI

© 2005 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. A Question of Policy: Sex Outside of Marriage What is the government doing to discourage sex outside of marriage? Preview QP

© 2005 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. Demographics  Increase in never-married adults: In % of U.S. adults 18 yrs. and older were never married  Racial differences among “never-married”: 38.9% of African American 30.9% of Hispanics 22.2% of Whites A

© 2005 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. Marital Status of U.S A

© 2005 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. Sociodemographics of Never-Marrieds  Age – 73% under 34 yrs. old yr. olds rapidly rising  Race – Whites less satisfied with being single  Gender – Women healthier than men A

© 2005 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. Categories of Singles  Voluntary temporary – never been married and not currently looking; postponing marriage though not opposed to it. Includes cohabitors.  Voluntary stable (permanent) – no intention of marrying (again or for the first time)  Involuntary temporary - never marrieds, divorced or widowed seeking marriage  Involuntary stable (permanent) – become reconciled to their single state. 4 A

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© 2005 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. Marital Delay  Most never-marrieds are only temporarily single  10.8% of males and 8.7% of females aged 44–54 yrs never married percentage is rising B

© 2005 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. Ages of Never Marrieds B

© 2005 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. Reasons for delay  Going to college  Building a career  Increased acceptance of non- marital sexual intercourse and cohabitation  Women form own identity B

© 2005 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. B End

© 2005 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. Reasons People Remain Single  Deliberate choice  Fear of marriage  Lack of opportunity (lack of available partners!)  Circumstances (e.g. geography, social isolation, or financial situation) C

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© 2005 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. Advantages of Being Single  Self-development / personal growth  Variety of relationships (also includes friendships)  Economic independence — self- sufficiency D

© 2005 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. Advantages of Being Single  Variety of sexual experiences  Freedom to control their own lives  More career opportunities D

© 2005 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. Disadvantages of Being Single  Loneliness — lack of companionship  Economic hardship  Social life organized around couples  Sexual frustration  Not having children D

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© 2005 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. Health and Well-being  Single people: less healthy than married people — shorter life expectancy  A greater % of married people report being happy vs. singles  SES is bigger predictor of life satisfaction and well being than whether single or married E

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© 2005 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. Living Arrangements  Living with others For economic and companionship reasons Since –24s living with parents has risen to over 50%  Living alone More females than males After age 45 females living alone increases F

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© 2005 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. Sexual Behavior of Singles  Most have vaginal intercourse by age 22  Number of sexual partners (30-44): Females: 4 Males: 6-8  90% heterosexual—male and female  Same-sex contact: 6% males 11% females G

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© 2005 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. Employment and Income  Marrieds are better off financially than singles  Reasons: Married households often have two incomes Married need more to support more Prejudices against women H

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© 2005 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. Single Parents  3x more single parent families since 1970  1/4 of children have single parents  4/5 of single parents are mothers  1/2 of women giving birth are never marrieds i

© 2005 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. Concerns of Single Parents  Role strain causes constant stress  work + child care + household = no leisure time + no social life  INADEQUATE INCOME  Spending enough time with children  Inadequate child care  Stress decreases quality of parenting I

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© 2005 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. The Older Never-Married Adult  More well-adjusted to single status than younger never-marrieds  Social support group is usually friends or remote family rather than close family  Happiness depends on satisfaction with standard of living and activities J

© 2005 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. J End