Half of First Babies Now Born to Unwed Moms
For the first time in U.S. history, the median age of American women when they have their first child is lower than the median age of marriage, an eye-opening new report discloses. The median age for marriage is 26.5 years for American women, while the median age for a first birth is 25.7 years, according to the “Knot Yet” report released by a team of academics and social activists. The report also reveals that nearly half — 48 percent — of first births are by unwed mothers. At age 25, 44 percent of women have had a baby, while only 38 percent have married. By the time they turn 30, “about two-thirds of American women have had a baby, typically out of wedlock,” states the report compiled by the National Marriage Project at the University of Virginia, the National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy, and the RELATE Institute. Among women with less than a high-school education, 83 percent give birth to their first child without being married, up from 33 percent in 1970. The “troubling” trend is that delayed marriage does not necessarily mean delayed motherhood, the report observes. Delayed marriage does offer several benefits. Women have more time to launch a successful career before marrying, and divorce rates are lower for later marriages. But the report points to negative repercussions as well: “Most researchers agree that on average, whether because of instability or absent fathers or both, children of unmarried mothers have poorer outcomes than children growing up with their married parents.” They are much more likely to experience family instability, school failure, and emotional problems, and they are three times more likely to see their parents break up, compared to children born to married parents. But “culturally, young adults have increasingly come to see marriage as a ‘capstone’ rather than a ‘cornerstone’ — that is, something they do after they have all their ducks in a row, rather than a foundation for launching into adulthood and parenthood,” the report surmises. “Moreover, one of the primary reasons for getting married — starting a family — is increasingly viewed as a relic of the past. The institution of marriage, and even the presence of two parents, are seen as nice but not necessary for raising children.”
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