In short, unmarried couples without college degrees are more likely to have children to support. Researchers say couples with college degrees rarely have children unless they are married.
Combined, these factors have reshaped what an American family means. More children than in the past grow up with only one parent or with adults they are not related to. It might be a mother's boyfriend or a father's girlfriend. More adults are staying single or staying single longer. And marriage is becoming less common, at least among people who did not go to college.
Traditional nuclear families -- meaning married parents with children -- are now in the minority.
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FAITH LAPIDUS: Some couples cannot afford to get married. Other couples cannot afford to get divorced. Sanford Ain says the Great Recession has forced some people to stay together -- and he should know.
Mr. Ain is a divorce lawyer in Washington and a fellow of the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers. He says in the last five years, fewer people have come to his office seeking a divorce.
SANFORD AIN: "People are just unable to afford to get divorced and create two households. They’re forced to remain together, at least for the time being."
As a result, he says, many couples may be trying harder to make their relationship work.
SANFORD AIN: “Whereas before, when people had the economic wherewithal to separate more easily, they were less inclined to make their marriage work. Now I think people are forced to make their marriage work for the benefit of themselves and their children."
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2013-11-25
2013-11-25
2013-11-25
2013-11-25
2013-11-25
2013-11-25