Recent Trends in Marriage and Family

 In 1890, the average age of 1 st marriages for women was 22 years old, for men 26 years old  In the 1950s the average age of 1 st marriages for women was 20.3 years old, for men 22.8 years old  In 2000, the average age for 1 st marriages for women was 25.1 years old, for men 26.8 years old  This signals an acceptance of being single  Many younger people are delaying marriage to complete their education and launch their careers.  It is also becoming more socially acceptable to live together outside of marriage

 Delayed childbearing is a common trend today as well ◦ In the 1960s, the average length between marriage and the birth of the 1 st child was 15 months, by the 1970s that interval jumped to 27 months  Many women are waiting until they are over 30 to have their 1 st child  This can conflict with raising young children and caring for elderly parents  These couples are known as the sandwich generation because they are caught between caring for their children and caring for their parents

 There has also been an increase in the number of couples who never have children ◦ Waited too long ◦ Infertility ◦ Choose not to have children  Voluntary childlessness is the conscious choice to remain childless  Career success is often a priority over having children for these couples, usually well-educated and high-income earners

 Dual-earner marriages has increased due to the number of working married women  Economic necessity has made this a common trend  Research has failed to find any negative impact on the children of families with women working, in fact some studies show that children of dual- earning parents may be more independent and motivated

 Increase in single parent families, often formed through divorce, separation, death of a spouse/parent, births to unwed mothers, or adoption by unmarried individuals  3 major sources of stress common to single-parent families ◦ Responsibility overload ◦ Task overload ◦ Lack of money  Children from single-parent households are also more likely to experience negative life outcomes ◦ Higher School drop-out rates ◦ Higher Teen pregnancy rates ◦ Higher Arrest rates

 Over 1/3 of all marriages today, one or both partners has been previously married  High rates of divorce and remarriage has led to an increase in stepfamilies  About 17% of all children under the age of 18 live in stepfamilies  The pressure and challenges of blending two families can be difficult and can put added strain on the marriage, often resulting in divorce

 Pg. 275 #1-7