The U.S. Census Bureau's 2009 American Community Survey reveals that the marriage rate for those aged 25-34 has dropped more than 10% from 2000 to 2009. In 2000, the number of people aged 25-34 who were married was 55.1% but in 2009 that rate dropped dramatically to 44.9%! Additionally, the percentage of those in that age group who have never been married rose from 34.5% in 2000 to 46.3% in 2009! The Population Reference Bureau attributes the decline in marriage rates to, "rising divorce rates, an increase in women's educational attainment and labor force participation, and a rise in cohabitation as an alternative or precursor to marriage." What do you think? Share your thoughts in the "comments" below! (Related: Single Women on the East Coast; Single Men in the West)
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Comments
What is your motive for getting into social situations?I thought that your “extra” well-done and thought-out facts about geograpy would be good to stimulate kid’s minds, but you seem to need to stimulate in ways that are already on TV too much.
Kids do not need more about marriage and divorce and single women, etc. Don’t get into it.
Please give us your intelligent take on Geography.
Thank You
Judith Baker
San Diego
I like Cultural Anthropology and I am an avid student of Sociology and Psychology.
Let’s use those venues when we are not studying Geography.
Okay Matt.
Never Mind…….
You must have your reasons.
Perhaps you need a break from all that ‘scientific” stuff..
Any good take, that can add to our kids’ understanding of a social condition is welcome. Most mainstream takes on fundamental issues are either sensational, superficial or plain stupid.
Many Regards, Much love & Hope.Phillipians 4:8&9
I am often surprised that so many people consider this site to be a site for kids. It is not. It is intended for adults who are interested in geography. Granted, there is much here that is appropriate for elementary and secondary geographic education but that does not cause me to shy away from mature themes, most of which lies in the realm of population geography.
Marriage statistics, especially their spatial distribution by state, region, or country are very much apart of Geography. A understanding of demographics helps us get a picture of geographic behavior of humans.
Kids and adults, who are thinking geographically will know to apply spatial thinking to facts such as declining marriage rates. E.g., How will that affect housing stock (more condos vs. single family homes to accommodate singles)? Or Are cohabiting couples more likely to live more independent lives which might affect travel patterns (travel more with friends rather than just with spouse) and economic spending (affecting distribution of resources).
Matt, I don’t see you delving into the salacious or even into the moral issues, but stating important facts about demographic patterns in our country. Be interesting to see some maps showing distribution of marriage patterns by state and county.
During my entire 33-year office career, I was only invited to one wedding of a co-worker. The few times any of my other co-workers got married, they kept it a secret- even when they sat at the very next desk to mine. In the last 20 years, I have only been invited to 4 weddings and attended 3, which were all of cousins. Sadly, the whole idea of weddings seems to be getting extinct in my experience.
With both people holding down a job, there isn’t time or funds to afford a formal marriage ceremony, so that formality is cut from the agenda. In addition, younger people are affiliated less with organized religion; more and more do not make time for church in their lives, rather spending time with their family instead. All this lends itself to avoidance of formalizing marriage either in a religious or civil manner. Since the law recognizes a common-law marriage relative to the splitting of assets upon separation, there is no real need to formalize a marriage now, thus common-law marriages have become the norm and are fully acceptable in our society; there is no more shame associated with it’s status.
We know the marriage rate is dropping but nobody is that interested in why it is dropping. When the subject comes up for discussion married people will enthusiastically tell people they did the right thing emotionally, culturally and religiously. They will also proclaim how much they love their spouse and raising children. Single men will say the marriage rate is in decline because they get treated badly in divorce court and by being forced to pay child support for their progeny. Single women smartly remain silent. Single women are the ones that benefit the most by remaining unmarried, and are pilloried by the rest of society if they speak up about the positive aspects of not being legally bound to a man.
The rates have been dropping significantly since the 1970′s this isnt a new trend. Men dont fear marriage we fear divorce. While some women have opted out men have done so in much greater numbers. Check out any of the womens magizines and you can see that.
Its getting harder I think for Males to find wives, as women want to have thier careers and often at least in early years I think women are getting better jobs..
Add to the roles today many women dont want to cook or have children young.. With jobs being very slim for the untrained or educated it no wonder..
I am older and I can see how it changing my generation you had one bread winner, wives stayed home and helped tha man get thru his work day and in turn he would reward her,, But today this is viewed is wrong or controling not to mention very few can live on one income, Not to forget men who can afford to support thier wives are afraid of mariege because of the lawyers and if a women refuses to cooperate divorce could break a man,,,,Not politically currect but if I was a younger man I would not be interested in mariage ..I think they have a handfull of issues to deal with today and what i see today is not mariage but two working roomates having alot of material things and seperatly having too much of a personal social life away from the mariage… Mariage roles have changes ,,,I think you will see more and more men going over seas to meet wives for they still belive in the traditional roles of man and women..American roles again are more complex and seem more about material gains than the old school love and children as the core of the mariage,,,sorry just my view