Good News Tucson - A Family Values Publication

Marriage & Divorce: By the Numbers

Experts, politicians, even clergy quote statistics about marriage and divorce. People who watch the American family are noting some interesting findings in current research. It is important to remember that social research is based on sampling and that biases exist, even among the best researchers. The family is alive and well, even in its various forms. Still, the need to connect is as strong as ever. So, what are these numbers?

Divorce: Despite the perception that America remains plagued by a divorce epidemic, the national per capita divorce rate has actually declined slightly since its peak in 1981 and is now at its lowest level since 1970.

Americans aren't necessarily making better choices about their long-term relationships. Even those who study marriage and work to make it more successful can't decide whether the above trend is grounds for celebration or cynicism.

Some experts say relationships are as unstable as ever - and divorces are down primarily because more couples live together without marrying. Other researchers, including Steve Martin (not that one) of the University of Maryland, have documented what they call "the divorce divide," contending that divorce rates are indeed falling substantively among college-educated couples but not among less-affluent, less-educated couples. Comparing marriages from early 1970s to those of the early '90s, Martin found that the breakup rate within 10 years of marriage dropped by one-third among college-educated women while remaining stable among less-educated women.

America's divorce rate began climbing in the late 1960s and skyrocketed during the '70s and early '80s, with the adoption of no-fault divorce laws. Since then, it's dropped by one-third, to 3.6, the lowest rate since 1970.

Cohabitation: The number of couples who live together without marrying has increased tenfold since 1960; a new study by Dr. Larry Bumpass shows the current cohabitation rate before marriage in the U.S. is 70%.

Marriage: The marriage rate has dropped by nearly 30 percent in past 25 years; and Americans are waiting about five years longer to marry than they did in 1970. Due to increases in population, the total number of married couples in America is higher than ever. But the proportion of households made up of married couples has for the first time ever, dropped below half. According to the Census Bureau's American Community Survey released earlier this year, heterosexual married couples made up 49.7%, or 55.2 million, of the nations 111.1 million households in 2005 (in 1930 married couples comprised 84% of all households).

What do these numbers mean? It seems we are skeptical of marriage, but still drawn to it. Many fear divorce, probably because so many are children of divorce. Will marriage disappear? Unlikely. But future generations must hear (and see) success stories.

Live and love well. (For citations on research studies, please email me at instepmin@aol.com)

Dr. Jeff Parziale is the director of InStep Ministries, which provides resources, counsel and support to singles, single parents and stepfamilies. Dr. Parziale is an author, speaker and counselor. To learn more about InStep, see their website: www.instepministries.com or call 520-721-0800.