The Changing American Family

Our notion of what constitutes a “normal American family” is changing fast, according to some trends observed by The U.S. Census Bureau.

Census recently released its 2014 America’s Families and Living Arrangements data, showing just how fast things are changing in America. For instance:

“Less than half (48 percent) of households today are married couples, down from 76 percent in 1940.

The median age when adults first marry continues to rise. In 2014, it was 29 for men and 27 for women, up from 24 and 21, respectively, in 1947.

36 percent of 30- to 34-year-olds have never been married.

There are about 13 million more householders 65 or older than there are householders under age 30. In 1960, the difference was just 2.5 million.

24 percent of married families with children under 15 have a stay-at-home mother, and 1 percent have a stay-at-home father.

24 percent of children live with at least one foreign-born parent (18.1 million).”

These are profound changes, indeed. Economic realities have created a nation of dual-income households, and many people are putting off marriage, and family formation. It makes you wonder what the “new normal” the next time there’s a Census taken.