births out of wedlock and poverty

Marriage and Poverty in the U.S.: By the Numbers

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One of the most alarming social trends in recent decades has been the growth in the out-of-wedlock birth rate—the percentage of all births that occur to non-married women. Throughout most of U.S. history, out-of-wed-lock childbearing was very rare.

When the War on Poverty began in 1963, only 7 percent of children in the U.S. were

born out of wedlock. Over the next four and a half decades, the number has risen steadily. In 2008, 40.6 percent of all births in the U.S. occurred outside marriage. The raw numbers of births are as follows: In 2008 there were 4.25 million births in the U.S. Of these 2.53 million were born to married couples and 1.7 million were born outside marriage.

Growth of Out-of-Wedlock Childbearing the U.S., 1929–2008

Source: U.S. Census Bureau data.

0

1930 1940 1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000 2008

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

40.6%

Percentage of Children Born out of Wedlock



The flip side of the out-of-wedlock birth rate is the marital birth rate—the percentage of all births that occur to married parents. Through most of the 20th century, births within marriage were the overwhelming norm, with over 95 percent of births occur-

ring to married couples.Beginning in the 1960s, the marital birth

share began to fall rapidly. In 2008, only 59 percent of births in the U.S. occurred to mar-ried couples.

Death of Marriage in the U.S., 1929–2008


20%

1930 1940 1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000 2008

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

100%

59.4%

Percentage of Children Born to Married Parents



The rise in out-of-wedlock childbearing is a major cause of high levels of child poverty.

In the U.S., single-parent families with children are nearly six times more likely to be poor than are married couples. In 2008, 37 percent of single mothers with children were

poor, compared to 6 percent of married cou-ples with children. The higher poverty rate among single-mother families is due both to the lower education levels of the mothers and the lower income due to the absence of the father.

Marriage Drops the Probability of Poverty by 80 Percent

Source: American Community Survey, 2006–2008 data.

Percentage of Families with Children That Are Poor

Single-Parent, Female-Headed

Families

36.5%

Married, Two-Parent

Families

6.4%



Among all families with children in the U.S., roughly two-thirds are married and one-third are single-parent families.

Among families that are not poor, three quarters are married. By contrast, the overwhelming majority of poor families are single-parent families; 71 percent of all poor families with children are headed by single parents, while only 29 percent are married couples.

71 Percent of Poor Families with Children Are Not Married


All Families Non-Poor Families

Poor Families

33%26%

71%

67%74%

29%

Non-Married Single-Parent Families

Married Families

Percentage of Families with Children



Most out-of-wedlock childbearing in the United States occurs among adult women in their 20s. Relatively few out-of-wedlock births are teen births occurring to girls under age 18. As the chart shows, only 8 percent of out-of-wedlock births in the U.S. occur to girls un-der age 18. By contrast, some 75 percent of out-of-wedlock births occur to young adult

women between the ages of 18 and 29. Only 17 percent of out-of-wedlock births occur to women age 30 and older.

Overall, births to girls under 18 are rare in the U.S.; only 3.3 percent of total births (both marital and non-marital) occur to girls in that age range.

Few Out-of-Wedlock Births Occur to Teenagers

Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2008 Births Preliminary data.

Age 17 and

Under8.0%

Age 18–1914.6%

Age 20–2437.6%

Age 25–2922.7%

Age 30–5417.2%

Percentage of Out-of-Wedlock Births by Age of Mother



Out-of-wedlock childbearing occurs most frequently among the women who will have the greatest difficulty supporting children by themselves: those with low levels of education. As a result, the U.S. is increasingly becom-ing a two-caste society. Children of the least-educated women are increasingly born and raised in single-parent families, while children with better-educated mothers are born to and raised largely by married couples.

In the U.S. in the years 2006–2008, more than two-thirds of births to women who were

high school dropouts occurred outside mar-riage. Among women who had only a high school degree, slightly more than half of all births were out of wedlock. By contrast, among women with at least a college degree, only 8 percent of births were out of wedlock and 92 percent of births occurred to married couples.

The decline of marriage among less educat-ed women significantly contributes to poverty and inequality in the nation.

Less-Educated Women Are Most Likely to Have Births Outside of Marriage

Note: Totals do not include cases for which education level was not reported.

Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2006 births data.

High School Dropout

32.6%

67.4%

High School Graduate

48.6%

51.4%

Some College

66.0%

34.0%

College Graduate

(0–11 years) (12 years) (13–15 years) (16+ years)

91.7%

8.3%

Married

Unmarried

Percentage of Mothers

Education Level of Mothers at Time of Birth

Marital Status of Mothers at Time of Birth

Education Level



The poverty rate for married couples is dramatically lower than that of single-headed households, even when compared to the rate for single parents with the same education level.

For example, the poverty rate for a single mother with only a high school degree is 31.7 percent, but the poverty rate for a married-couple family headed by an individual who

is only a high school graduate is only 5.6 per-cent. Marriage drops the odds of being poor by 80 percent.

Being married has roughly the same effect in reducing one’s poverty as adding five to six years of education. On average, high school dropouts who are married have a far lower poverty rate than do single parents with one or two years of college.

Both Marriage and Education Are Highly Effective in Reducing Poverty


High School Dropout High School Graduate Some College College Graduate

47.0%

15.2%

31.7%

5.6%

24.2%

3.2%

8.9%

1.5%

Poverty Rate of Mothers by Education and Marital Status

Single Mothers Married Mothers



Out-of-wedlock childbearing varies considerably by race.In 2008, 40.6 percent of births in the U.S. occurred out of wedlock. Among white non-

Hispanics, 28.6 percent of births were outside marriage. Among Hispanics, the figure was 52.5 percent, while among blacks it was 72.3 percent.

Out-of-Wedlock Births by Race

Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2008 Births Preliminary data.

White Non-Hispanic

28.6%

Black Non-Hispanic

72.3%

Hispanic

52.5%

All Races

40.6%

Percentage of Births That Are out of Wedlock



The black out-of-wedlock childbearing rate has always been somewhat higher than among whites. However, prior to the onset of the War on Poverty in 1963, the rates for both whites and blacks were comparatively low. In 1963, 3.1 percent of white children were born out of wedlock. By 2008, the number had risen to 28.6 percent.

In 1963, 24.2 percent of blacks were born out of wedlock. By 2008 the number had risen to 72.3 percent.

Growth of Out-of-Wedlock Childbearing by Race


0

1930 1940 1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000 2008

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80% Black Non-Hispanic

Hispanic

White Non-Hispanic

72.3%

52.5%

28.6%

Percentage of Children Born out of Wedlock



In the U.S. in 2008, some 53 percent of all births occurred to non-Hispanic whites; 25 per-cent occurred to Hispanics and 15 percent to non-Hispanic blacks.

All Births: Racial Composition

Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, NHS 2008 data.

White Non-Hispanic

53%Hispanic25%

Black Non-Hispanic

15%

Asian/Pacific Islander 6%

American Indian/Alaska Native 1%



Black and Hispanic women are more likely to give birth out of wedlock than are white non-Hispanic women. However, because non-Hispanic whites are far more numerous in the popu-lation, the greatest number of out-of-wedlock births occurs to that group. Of all non-marital births in the U.S. in 2008, some 37 percent were to non-Hispanic whites, 31 percent were to Hispanics, and 26 percent were to black non-Hispanic women.

Out-of-Wedlock Births: Racial Composition

Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, NHS 2008 data.

White Non-Hispanic

36.8%

Hispanic30.9%

Black Non-Hispanic

25.6%

Asian/Pacific Islander 6.7%

American Indian/Alaska Native 1.8%



Marriage is associated with lower rates of poverty for whites, blacks, and Hispanics. Within each racial and ethnic group, the pov-erty rate for married couples is substantially lower than the poverty rate for non-married families.

For example, in 2008, the poverty rate for black married couples was 6.9 percent, while the rate for non-married black families was

seven times higher at 35.3 percent. Among non-Hispanic white married couples, the poverty rate was 3.1 percent, while the rate for non-married white families was also seven times higher at 21.7 percent. Among Hispanic married families, the poverty rate was 12.8 percent, while the poverty rate among non-married families was three times higher at 37.5 percent.

On Average, Non-Married Families Are Five Times More Likely to Be Poor

Source: American Community Survey, 2006–2008 data, 3-year estimates.

Black Non-

Hispanic

Hispanic White Non-

Hispanic

Overall Black Non-

Hispanic

Hispanic White Non-

Hispanic

Overall

6.9%

12.8%

3.1%6.4%

35.3%37.5%

21.7%

36.5%

Percentage of Families That Are Poor

MARRIED COUPLES

NON-MARRIED, SINGLE-HEADED HOUSEHOLDS

births out of wedlock and poverty

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