Assignment 2: Family Demographics

Part 1 Assignment 2

1.  The first highlight that struck me from the census (Projections of the Number of Households and Families in the United States: 1995 to 2010) report was the fact that number of married-couple households (proportioned) would decrease in percentage during this period.  Within the (15) year timeframe I am not surprised by this fact.  In my opinion, with the rise of higher educated women and even relating to the SYF trends, marriage and family is not the first item on the list of things to do once out of school.  The next would be the bullet point of married-couple households with no children being on the rise.  The choice to bear children may not be of importance to this generation.  Again, in my opinion, women are marrying later and putting careers first.  Also, the risks of later pregnancies may be a contributing factor.

2.  I am not surprised by the findings on the charts.  Priorities, trends and societal roles have changed and are still changing.  The roles of families and households are not the same within the last (15) years and will not be the same in the next (15) years.  I believe that the surges of data fluctuation will always be there - nothing can be consistent when dealing with human beings.

3.  The data of married couples with children vs no children has a noticeable difference.  There are more married couples without children and that number has risen.  On a whole, households without children supersede over those with children.

3a.  Families that do not have children have a higher percentage compared to 1995.
3b.  Families that contain single parent or single adult households are becoming less of the norm.

4.  In (5) years I will hope to still be living in my "married-couple with children under (18) home".  That may change in (5) years if there is a chance that one of my in-laws pass - the other would be invited to live with us.  In (10) years, my oldest daughter will be (18) and on her way to college - so I would anticipate the same living situation minus one child.  When I am (70) years old - God willing - I may be in the category of living with relatives, alone or non-relatives. 

Part 2 Assignment 2

Believe it or not, I have not seen the S&TC movie but I am very familiar with the show.  I love the empowered attitudes of the women.

The New Order Girl - Hymowitz

1.  Women today versus (40) years ago have completely altered the view of what a woman should be like.  According to Hymowitz, the single young females (SYF) have created a whole new spectrum of women who definitely deviate from the "norm".  Changes include marring and bearing children later in life, obtaining higher education degrees and putting careers first.


2.  The new age norm for marriage has risen from the early 20's creeping up into the 30's for women.  They are staying single longer, staying in school longer and finding satisfaction within their own successes. 


3.  Women are working more now than in the past and for longer hours.  Catapulted by higher education placed women on the maps for higher level positioned jobs and pay.


For me, going back to college is to pursue a second career.  After college I had a few jobs before I worked for a Steelcase dealership and worked there as a Corporate Designer for about (13) years before the economy started to derail.  During this time I did marry but not until I was (2) days before my 30th birthday in 2002 (talk about cohabiting!).  I did put my career first and plans to marry and have children later.  My husband and I traveled throughout our 20's without any hesitation or worries.  We were on our 2nd home before we were even engaged.  The "timeline" of when to do what was not an issue.  Now here I am planning out career #2.  I am still young (of course I think 39 is young!!) and my kids are at an age where I can devote enough time to pursue another degree.  


As for a comparison to one of the S&TC ladies - I believe that we have a sprinkle of C,S,C,M in all of us.  I do have something in common with Charlotte - she marries a Jewish man and in one episode was seeking out Rabbi's to convert her to Judaism.  I grew up Catholic and converted to Judaism (my husband is Jewish) before I got married.  When I was (15) years old, I knew I was going to marry my husband!  And a side note - I met him because I used to date his best friend and to this day, we are still friends.


Part 3 Assignment 2


1.  In the article - Changing Demographics in the U.S. by Cherlin, it is noted that the median age for men and women to marry have risen into the later 20's in all ethnic groups.  The factor is also weighted on the fact that these individuals have a higher education.  They are also using educational levels as an attribute as to whom they chose to marry as well where as in the past, this decision was based on religious backgrounds.  The individuals who are less educated are in the margins of less likely to marry.


There is an increase of births outside of marriage than that in the 1950's and a rise in childbearing adolescence. These facts are based on women who have low levels of education and are unwed.  Educated women are still waiting longer to have children and there is also a rise in cohabiting partners with children that was not a variable from past decades.





Divorce is another topic that is analyzed by the level of education of the individuals.  Divorce is on the decline from its peak about 20 years ago.


2.  This research has extreme levels of new data from the past.  New family roles and trends are introduced which will alter the past data and introduce new entries of facts and areas of study.  Demographics and society are always changing.  Keeping up with the information is a challenge but it helps us understand who we are and where we are headed in the future.


3.  The author cites Teachman, Tedrow & Crowden (2000) in his article describing the latest research which is enhancing the research done by Paul Glick from 1947 and then again in 1988.


Lastly, in regards to S&TC, the lives of the women encompass a diverse group of family roles.  There are references to the SYF trends, living single, an unwed mother with an involved father, dating rituals and a diverse blend of sexual trends.