Among the 2,691 adults surveyed by the Pew Research Center, 39 percent say marriage is becoming obsolete, up from 28 percent who responded to the same question posed by Time magazine in 1978.
UPDATE 11/19/10: Men hold marriage in higher regard than women
UPDATE 12/14/10 Baby Boomers choose divorce (video):
-- From "Pew Study: Marriage May Be Becoming Obsolete" posted at CBS TV4 (South Florida) 11/18/10
Census data reflect a declining percentage of married adults: 54 percent in 2010, down from 57 percent in 2000 and 72 percent in 1960.
At the same time, the median age at first marriage increased in 2010 to its highest ever - 28.2 for men and 26.1 for women, according to Census reports.
That is up from 26.8 and 25.1 in 2000. Among those ages 25-34, the percentage of those who are married fell below unmarrieds for the first time in more than a century.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Nearly 40% say marriage is becoming obsolete" by Sharon Jayson, USA TODAY 11/18/10
Marriage is still the norm for college grads (64%) but less so for those with no college (48%). Blacks are much less likely to be married (32%) than whites (56%), the report finds.
Cohabitation has nearly doubled since 1990. Pew found 44% of adults (and more than half ages 30-49) have cohabited. Among these, 64% say they considered it a step toward marriage.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
UPDATE 7/19/12 - Single men, some homosexual, seek children to father without women (ABC News video):
From "Study: Marriage falls, family unit changes" by UPI 11/18/10
The survey found that today's youth were more inclined to consider cohabitation without marriage and other family forms -- such as same-sex marriage and interracial marriage -- in a positive light.
Seven in 10 respondents said the trend toward more single women having children was bad for society, and 61 percent said that a child needs a mother and father to grow up happily, results indicated.
Forty-three percent of respondents indicated they thought the trends toward more cohabitation without marriage, more unmarried couples raising children and more gay couples raising children were bad for society, Pew said.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Marriage: What's It Good For?" by Belinda Luscombe, Time Magazine 11/18/10
In 1960 . . . nearly 70% of American adults were married; now only about half are. Eight times as many children are born out of wedlock. Back then, two-thirds of 20-somethings were married; in 2008 just 26% were. And college graduates are now far more likely to marry (64%) than those with no higher education (48%).
. . . Half or more of the respondents in the Pew poll say that marital status is irrelevant to achieving respect, happiness, career goals, financial security or a fulfilling sex life. When it comes to raising kids, though, it's a landslide, with more than three-quarters saying it's best done married.
Yet very few people say children are the most important reason to get hitched. Indeed, 41% of babies were born to unmarried moms in 2008, an eightfold increase from 50 years ago, and 25% of kids lived in a single-parent home, almost triple the number from 1960. Contrary to the stereotype, it turns out that most of the infants born to unmarried mothers are not the product of casual sexual encounters. One of the most extensive databases on such kids, the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing Study, a joint project of Princeton and Columbia universities, which has been following 5,000 children from birth to age 9, found that more than half of the unmarried parents were living together at the time their child was born and 30% of them were romantically involved (but living apart).
Most of those unwed mothers said their chances of marrying the baby's father were 50% or greater, but after five years, only 16% of them had done so and only about 20% of the couples were still cohabiting. This didn't mean that the children didn't live with a man, however, since about a quarter of their moms were now living with or married to a new partner. That doesn't always work out as well as it seems . . . Mom's new boyfriend often means their biological father is less likely to visit and less likely to support their mother. Many stepparents are wonderful and committed, but a series of live-in lovers is not at all the same thing. . . .
To read the entire very lengthy article above, covering the Pew results, CLICK HERE.
From "Census: Solo households continue to expand" By Cheryl Wetzstein, The Washington Times 11/10/10
More than one in four American households has only one person in it, reflecting a slow but steady expansion of single living, the Census Bureau reports.
Factors that lead to people living by themselves include delaying marriage in one's youth; permanently separating or getting a divorce; living longer as a widow or widower; and never marrying, researchers say.
Single living was once fairly uncommon -- only 13 percent of U.S. homes had single householders in 1960, the bureau noted in its new report, "America's Families and Living Arrangements: 2010."
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
Click headlines below for previous articles:
Government Destines Black Children to Poverty
Massachusetts Strives to Replace Mom with Government
White House Orders Redefinition of Family
Study: Divorce is Hazardous to Your Health
Divorce Still Damaging to Children Despite Being More Acceptable
Hollywood Mainstreams Polygamy in TV Series
Study: 40% of Men Get Free Pass for Adultery
The Demise of Family Gets Complicated
