|
|
|
Estimated Number of Printed Pages: 50+
This information duplicates items from the rest of The Factbook, selecting only those items that relate to North America. However, numbers don't mean much without a comparison to family life in other continents. And that is why we may have included a lot of information on certain issues, but it seems like we have less regional information for others. Actually, that isn't the case – we just chose what were for us notable commonalities or exceptions, cross-culturally. For further information about a particular region, see the regional studies we've referenced in the footnotes: they probably have any additional information you might need on a particular country or region.
Links to Sources for this material are available below. Please also see The Factbook Sources page for further information regarding Factbook sources and their availability.
STEPFAMILIES
One-third –
Estimated proportion of all Americans who – through birth, divorce, and remarriage – are part of a stepfamily. 1.
5.1 million
Number of U.S. children living with at least one stepparent. 2.
4.9 million
Number of U.S. children living with a biological parent and a stepparent. Of these, 4.1 million of these children were living with a biological mother and a stepfather. 3.
10 percent
of U.S. children – 7.3 million children – live with a half-sibling. 4.
One percent
of U.S. children live with a stepsibling. 5.
14.6 percent
of U.S. minor children live in a blended family – where they are either the stepchild of a parent, and/or have stepsiblings or half-siblings. 6.
If you find those numbers shocking – well, they are almost nothing, compared to Colonial times . . . .
In southern Maryland between 1658 and 1705, 67 percent of the married or widowed men who died left behind a family of all minor children. If the children were fortunate, they'd find themselves in a stepfamily – the product of their mother's quick remarriage. If not, the children could become wards of the state, apprenticed to a tradesman, or even sold as slaves. 7.
My step-stepmother –
Because so many died young in some of the American colonies, it was not uncommon in those areas for single men and women to marry spouses who were considerably older than they were and already had children. Then, if their spouse died, the young widow or widower would soon remarry, bringing both biological and stepchildren into the new marriage . . . which was often to another spouse who also already had children – including stepchildren. The result was not just that colonial families were "blended families" – meaning they had both step and biological children – but also regularly included children not biologically related to either parent. 8.
Cinderella's fate – a dead father and a cruel stepmother – would have been much more real – and upsetting – to a child in the American colonies than today's stepchild:
Cruel treatment by stepparents was commonplace in the colonies. If stepparents were blatantly abusive, a county court could step in and remove a child from a home. But having a child work – even to the point of near slavery – would not have been considered abuse, since the law provided for stepparents to be reimbursed for whatever they used to raise a stepchild. And if there was no money to do that, they were entitled to have a child work to earn her keep. 9.
The more things change . . . .
Only five U.S. states require that a stepparent help financially provide for his stepchild. 10.
At Higher Risk
Studies have shown that a report of a child's maltreatment is twice as likely to be filed when there is a father-surrogate instead of two-biological parents in the house, while stepfather-caregivers are more likely than biological fathers to sexually and physically abuse the children under their care. Stepfathers also involved in a slightly higher number of reported family violence incidents. 11.
Disadvantaged –
children living with a parent and stepparent are more disadvantaged in terms of psychological functioning, behavioral problems, education, and health than a child raised by both biological parents. 12.
If a stepchild yells, "He can't tell me what to do!"
technically, she's right. Stepparents in the U.S. have no legal relationship with their stepchildren, even if they live together. Therefore, they have no legal right to discipline a child. They can't authorize emergency treatment or even sign a school report card. In fact, stepparents have less legal authority over stepchildren than a legal guardian or a foster parent. 13.
Three percent
of the 45.5 million U.S. households with children of any age have only stepchildren. 14.
0.1 percent
of all 45.5. million U.S. households with children include the householder's biological children and adopted children and stepchildren. 15.
Approximately 271,000
unmarried men in the U.S have stepchildren living in their households. 16.
198,000 –
Of the 271,000 unmarried men with stepchildren, 198,000 of them are living with a female unmarried partner. And therefore it's likely they are considering themselves stepfathers of their unmarried partner's children. 17.
90 percent
of stepchildren in the U.S. live with a householder who is in the labor force. 18.
67 percent
of stepchildren in the U.S. live in a home that is owned and occupied by the householder. That is the same percentage as for biological children. 19.
Between 30 and 40 percent
of stepchildren in the U.S. will go through the divorce of their custodial parent and stepparent. 20.
Almost every state in the U.S. ends a stepparent-stepchild relationship if the biological parent divorces or dies. And in most states, a stepparent has no legal right for custody of a stepchild – not even a right of visitation. 21.
North Dakota
is the only state that requires a stepparent to provide for the stepchildren once the stepparent has divorced the biological parent. 22.
SINGLE PARENT FAMILIES DEMOGRAPHICS
" [S]ociological studies show that, at least in some [Western European] countries . . . single motherhood is only a temporary, transitional stage in the union formation. Many unmarried mothers, in other words, are not necessarily to be considered as lone parents. Single motherhood by choice, more particularly among older, better-educated, working women, also seems to be on the rise . . . , but this phenomenon is not yet well documented. Contrary to all the former categories of one-parent families, widowed lone-parent families are, as a result of decreases in mortality, strongly declining." 1.
"As the divorce rate soared after 1960, three other major trends started to emerge that were part of the 20th century's transformation in pair-bonding in the Western world: the rate of marriage decreased, while the rates of cohabitation without marriage and nonmarital births increased. . . . This nonmarital birthrate increase is particularly impressive because it occurred at the same time that women in the West had more contraceptive choice than ever before in the history of the human species." 2.
26 percent
of U.S. children under the age of 18 lived in a single-parent home. 3.
In the U.S. and Western Europe, "It is likely that the frequency of one-parent families, at least as a transitional family stage in the life course, will increase or remain high. These families are highly vulnerable, since most are headed by women, whose social position is still relatively weaker than that of men. These women have to cope with the existing incompatibilities between gainful employment and family life, especially child care." 4.
30 percent
of U.S. “children in married-couple family groups were living with householders who had at least a bachelor’s degree, compared with 9 percent of children living with neither parent present and 12 percent of children living in single-parent family groups.” 5.
|
|
|
|
| U.S. Hispanic Female-Householders –
|
|
|
|
|
Between 1850 and 1880, between 25 and 38 percent of Spanish-surnamed households in Los Angeles, California, Santa Fe, New Mexico, and Tucson, Arizona were headed by women – when just four to nine percent of White Non-Hispanic households had a female head. This was due to a high mortality rate for Mexican-American men – twice that of women. 6.
In 2000, 17.3 percent of Hispanic households had a female head, compared to 11.8 percent of the total population. 7.
|
|
|
|
| 4.4 million
Number of U.S. male-maintained family households with no wife present: that’s 4.2 percent all households. 8.
19.2 percent
of American children live with single mothers in 2002, down from 21.5 percent in 1997. 9.
About 70 percent
of American single mothers were employed in March and April 2003, down from] its peak of nearly 75 percent in November and December 2000. 10.
12 percent
of U.S. "female-maintained family households with no husband present represented 12 percent, while male-maintained family households with no wife present were 4 percent of all households." 11.
"From 1970 to 2000, the number of [U.S.] male-maintained family households and female-maintained family households both with no spouse present increased. During the same time period, the proportion of female-maintained family households with no husband present was more than double that of their male counterparts." 12.
"In 1990/91 lone-parent families represented 8.6 percent of all families with children under 18 years of age in Spain, in contrast to 11.9 percent in France, 15.7 percent in Germany, 16.8 percent in Canada, 18.1 percent in the Netherlands, 22.0 percent in Denmark, 22.3 percent in Sweden, and 23.5 percent in the United States." 38.
SINGLE PARENT FAMILY EFFECTS AND ECONOMICS
"Children who grow up in single-parent families are twice as likely to have a child before the age of 20, and one and a half times as likely to be out of school and out of work in their late teens and early 20s as their counterparts who grow up in two-parent families." 39.
When single moms work evenings, only slightly more than 35 percent eat with their children at least five days a week. 40.
Children who live with only one parent or with a parent and stepparent, experience more disadvantages in terms of psychological functioning, behavioral problems, education, and health. 41.
It's five times as likely
for U.S. children in mother-only family groups to be in poverty as children living in married-couple family groups: 39 percent of children in mother-only groups are in poverty while eight percent of married-couple families are in poverty. 42.
53.3 percent
of U.S. mothers without present spouses (married without spouse, separated, divorced, widowed or never married ) who are in the labor force. 43.
$25,500
is the median family income for U.S. female householders with no husband present. That is about half the income of all families and less than half of married-couple families. And, adjusting for inflation, it's also less than the median family income of married-couple families in 1969 ($39,800). 44.
"More than half (55.4 percent) of the [U.S.] families maintained by men without spouses were homeowners, compared with about half (49.6 percent) of [U.S.] families maintained by women without spouses." 45.
"From 1969 to 1999, the income gap between [U.S.] families maintained by women with no husband present and married-couple families widened. During that time, [U.S.] families maintained by women with no husband present had a smaller percentage increase in median income (32 percent) than that of married-couple families (44 percent)." 46.
28.0 percent – 3.9 million –
of the households in the U.S. with a female-householder and no-husband present families are in poverty – compared to just 5.5 percent of married-couple families. 47.
13.5 percent
of the households in the U.S. with a male-householder and no-wife present families in the U.S. are in poverty – compared to 5.5 percent of married-couple families. 48.
52.6 percent
of related U.S. children under six who live in families with female householders with no husband present were in poverty in 2004, about five times the rate of their counterparts in married couple families (10.1 percent). 49.
59.2 percent
of U.S. children living with a single mother lived in poverty in 1994. 50.
16.7 percent
of U.S. children living with single parents lived in poverty in 1994. 51.
WHAT WE (SORT OF) KNOW – DEMOGRAPHICS OF GAYS IN THE U.S.
1300 A.D.
And there's an apparent consensus among historians that it has only been since 1300 A.D. since the Catholic Church sought to discourage same gender unions. 1.
Now, of course,
a number of religious denominations recognize same gender marriages, and perform ceremonies of marriage for same gender couples, while for still others, homosexuality is grave sin that is grounds for expulsion from the religious community. 2.
An estimated two percent to 10 percent
of the total U.S. population that is gay, lesbian or bisexual. In the last three elections, the Voter News Service exit poll registered the gay vote between 4 percent and 5 percent. 3.
So when does sex equal sexuality?
In the American National Health and Social Life Survey of 1992, only 2.8 percent men and 1.4 percent women reported that they were gay or bisexual. But almost twice of those same men – 4.9 percent – and three times as many of the women – 4.1 percent – reported that they had had at least one same-sex partner since they were 18 years old. Similarly, surveys found that 5.2 percent of British men and 4.1 percent of French men had had a same-sex partner at some point in their lives while 2.7 percent of British women and 2.6 percent of French women had had a same-sex partner. 4.
Gay or straight – men really are all cads?
Well, all we know is that over 90 percent of women marry. 93.8 of lesbians will at some point live with a same-sex partner. And, uh, 32.1 percent of gay men don't ever live with a same-sex partner. So you tell us. What do you think that means? 5.
Closets aren't just for kids in Narnia –
|
|
|
|
| 28.7 percent
According to demographers' analysis of the U.S. 1990 Census, 28.7 of the women who identified themselves as lesbian had been previously married. Another 1.2 percent said that they were lesbian and were still married at the time of the survey. According to demographers' analysis, for two other preeminent U.S. surveys – the National Health and Social Life Survey and the General Social Survey – the number was even higher: 46 percent of lesbians were either married or previously married. The difference between these two amounts should not call both into question. Instead, the second findings actually support the Census finding – in essence, establishing a minimum percentage. Census reports are responses to a question as to marital status at a particular point in time. For example, the Census asks if someone is currently married, but does not always ask if a currently married person was divorced. The other surveys examine sexual behavior and practices over a person's entire life course. 6.
17.2 percent
of the men who identified themselves as gay in the 1990 U.S. Census had been previously married, while another 1.3 percent said that they were gay and still married at the time of the survey. According to another 1990s survey, the number was even higher: 30 percent of gay men were either married or previously married. 7.
|
|
|
|
|
Gays are more educated –
According to 1990 census data, almost 30 percent of American gay men in a relationship had college degrees, and 13 percent of them had done post-graduate studies, about twice the rate as for married men: 17.7 percent of married men had a college degree and 6.8 percent have done post-graduate work. Similarly, 31 percent of lesbians in relationships had a college degrees, and 15.6 percent have done post-graduate studies. Only 17.9 percent of married women had college degrees, and just 4.9 percent had done post-grad work. 8.
But gay men earn less –
In 1990, the average U.S. college educated married man aged 45 to 54 was making $55,623 a year, while his gay partnered counterpart only made $47,541. But lesbian partnered women were making about $6,000 to $9,000 more than the married women. Of course, women are always paid less, so they were still making one-third to one-half less than the men were. 9.
Almost two-thirds
of Fortune 100 companies offer health benefits to same-sex partners. 10.
Four to six years younger –
U.S. same-sex couples living together tend to be about four to six years younger than the average married opposite-sex couple. 11.
Six to seven years older –
U.S. same-sex couples living together tend to be about six to seven years older than the average unmarried opposite-sex couples who live together. 12.
594,000
The number of same-sex couple households in the U.S., according to the 2000 Census. 13.
301,026
of those are gay male couple households. 14.
293,364
of those are lesbian couple households. 15.
About 314 percent
the increase in number of U.S. same-sex households since the 1990 census. However, the increase is more due to the fact that the families were previously undercounted, not out of a dramatic increase in the families themselves. 16.
By as much as 62 percent
the estimated 2000 census's current undercount of U.S. gay and lesbian families, according to the Human Rights Campaign, a gay and lesbian advocacy group. 17.
30 percent
of gay and lesbian people are living in a committed relationship in the same residence, according to a 2001 Harris Interactive Poll. 18.
GAYS RAISING CHILDREN
The best book I can recommend on the subject of gays raising children is titled Families Like Mine: Children of Gay Parents Tell It Like It Is by Abigail Garner, published by HarperCollins, 2004. 19.
Ms. Garner makes the following very astute points:
That gay-friendly media stories usually try to show how incredibly normal and healthy children of LGBT parents are, and in so doing, media representations of LGBT families have yet to catch up to reflect their true diversity.
Children with LGBT parents see how they are represented publicly and begin to internalize a paradox: to be accepted for being different, they first have to prove that they are just like everyone else.
Because the right for LGBT families to exist is the subject of debate, children begin to figure out that the outcome of this debate rests on how they ‘turn out.’ They are not allowed to be as wacky, troubled, or complex as any other American family.
The result: children of same-sex-oriented parents have issues like all children do, at the rate all children do, but they often do not seek help or counsel for their troubles, because they don’t want to reflect badly on their parents and/or same-sex parents in general. They are afraid their parents will be blamed and politically penalized. So they are more likely to hide their problems, and let them grow, untreated. For instance, a child might let her learning disability go undiagnosed. Or a child who hates algebra and skips school might not let anyone know, for fear his parent’s sexual-orientation will be blamed. And worse. Drug use, teen sexuality, depression all get ignored because of fear of the accusation that it has something to do with the orientation of his or her parents.
In other words, this public debate is putting children at risk unnecessarily. It is causing youths who need help to forego help.
Between 1 and 9 million
The estimated number of children in the United States have at least one parent who is lesbian or gay. 20.
Between 3 and 5 million
The estimated number of lesbian and gay parents who have had children during prior opposite-sex relationships. 21.
Most of the children
with lesbian or gay parents were conceived in the context of a heterosexual relationship. Many may have lived with both their heterosexual parents for at least the first few years of their lives. If the lesbian or gay parent decides to "come out," the couple may divorce, but continue to share child-rearing responsibilities. For these families, the gay parents may or may not have homosexual relationships. But in those that do, the issues confronting them are similar to those of heterosexual stepfamilies. 22.
Two out of every thousand
of couples in the U.S. with children are same-sex couples, according to the 2000 Census. 23.
Mississippi, South Dakota, Alaska, South Carolina, and Louisiana –
The states where U.S. same-sex couples are most likely raising children, despite the fact that those states do not have high concentrations of same-sex couples. In fact, one-fourth of same-sex couples with children live in an area with a comparatively low concentration of all same-sex couples. 24.
In 96,000 of
lesbian couple households in the U.S., the children of the householder live with the couple. 25.
That's 33 percent
of U.S. female same-sex householders, nationally. On a regional basis, there are female same-sex householders living in the South (34 percent) than the Northeast (31 percent). 26.
At least 40 percent
of U.S. female same-sex householders in Mississippi, South Dakota, and Utah, live with their children. 27.
In 66,000 of
U.S. gay male couple households, the children of the householder live with the couple. 28.
22 percent
of U.S. male same-sex householders, nationally, live with their children. On a regional basis, there are female same-sex householders living in the South (34 percent) than the Northeast (31 percent). 29.
30 percent or more
of U.S. male same-sex householders in Mississippi, South Dakota, Idaho and Utah, live with their children. In Alaska, 36 percent of male same-sex households have the householder's children living with them. In Florida and Minnesota, it's just under half that (17 percent). 30.
96 percent
of all U.S. counties have at least one same-sex couple with children under 18 in the household, according to the U.S. 2000 Census. 31.
Two out of every thousand
of couples in the U.S. with children are same-sex couples, according to the Urban Institute analysis of the 2000 Census. 32.
WHERE U.S. GAYS LIVE
99.3 percent
of the counties in the U.S. have gay and lesbian families living in them. 33.
It Isn't Just an Expression: There Really is a Boys' Town, and It's Different than Suburbia
Compared to married heterosexual couples, gay and lesbian couples are more willing to live in, and possibly revive, distressed urban areas. They are more likely to live in neighborhoods which are both racially and ethnically diverse and have: more college-educated residents; older housing stock; higher crime rates and higher property values. 34.
California
the U.S. state with the largest percent of same-sex couple households: 1.4 percent. Massachusetts, New York and Vermont are tied for second – they all have 1.3 percent of their households being same-sex couples. 35.
San Francisco –
the U.S. city with a population of over 500,000 that has the largest percent of same-sex couple households. Okay, that probably wasn't a surprise. But this might be. Just 2.7 percent of all San Francisco households are same-sex couples. 36.
Provincetown, Massachusetts
The Cape Cod neighborhood with the U.S.'s highest concentration of same-sex couples – and the self-proclaimed titles as "gayest" town in America. 37.
San Francisco, Fort Lauderdale, Santa Rosa, Seattle, and New York,
The top U.S. metropolitan areas for gay male couples. 38.
Santa Rosa, Santa Cruz, Santa Fe, San Francisco, and Oakland,
The top U.S. metropolitan areas for lesbian couples. Note that only one of these cities is also on the list of gay male couples. That's because it turns out that gay and lesbians do not live in the same areas. Instead, of the ten metropolitan areas with the highest gay male couple population, only four of those cities are on the same list for the lesbian population. And it isn't just the cities that are different, but the type of cities they are: for example, American gay males tend to live in larger cities that have higher concentrations of gay populations than do lesbians. 39.
Of the top ten states with the highest gay male population, only five of them have the highest lesbian populations. For gay men, the top state is California. For lesbians, it's Vermont – which is tenth on the list for gay males. 40.
The South
is where most U.S. black same-sex couples live. 41.
Texas's metropolitan areas
is where most U.S. Hispanic gay or lesbian couples live. 42.
Almost one in five
of those in a same-sex couple household is at least 55 years old. 43.
At least 30 percent
of the U.S. gay and lesbian couples who live in the upper Midwest – North Dakota, South Dakota, Montana, and Wyoming – are over 55 years old. 44.
Alaska and Vermont
have the highest concentration of gay and lesbian coupled seniors in their senior population. 45.
IS FAMILY IMPORTANT?
75 percent
of Americans believe that family is the most important factor in achieving personal happiness. 1.
"The geography of families in the central and northern parts of Europe and the communities in North America are characterized by relatively weak family ties. In contrast, families from the Mediterranean region possess stronger family bonds, as evidenced by the care they render to aged or weak members of society. There are strong evidences which indicate that these differences have extensive historical causes, which may likely have characterized European families for several centuries." 7.
"In weak-family areas, the value attributed to the individual and to individualism tends to predominate. Young adults leave home, encouraged by their parents, so as to acquire the experiences they need to handle life as autonomous individuals. Leaving home at an early age is considered an important part of their education. Where the strong family flourishes, the familial group more than the individual tends to predominate in the socialization of the young. In these contexts, the family is seen as defending its members against the difficulties imposed by social and economic realities. A child receives support and protection until he or she leaves home for good, normally for marriage, and even later." 8.
"Loneliness is one of the most important social problems in weak-family societies. I refer to the loneliness of the individual who must confront the world and his own life without the safety net of familial support so characteristic of strong-family regions. Suicide, often an indirect consequence of loneliness, tends to be far higher in northern Europe and the United States than it is in southern Europe. The effects of loneliness are compensated in weak-family societies by a strong tradition of civic association, where people form groups, clubs, and societies for the most varied purposes. The number and variety of these associations in England or the [U]nited States would be unimaginable for a citizen of southern Europe." 9.
DOES LIVING NEAR BY MEAN YOU'RE CLOSE?: FAMILY PROXIMITY AND CONTACTS
72.9 percent
of American adult children describe their relationships with their mothers as "very close." 10.
57.0 percent
of American adult children describe their relationships with their fathers as "very close." 11.
31 percent
– one in three – of American adult children have a "tight-knit" relationship with their mothers, while just 20 percent have such a close connection with their fathers. 12.
28 percent
of American adult children have a sociable relationship with their mothers – where they have frequent contact because of their emotional connection and geographic proximity. 23 percent have this kind of a relationship with their fathers. 13.
19 percent
of American adult children have an "intimate but distant" relationship with their mothers and 14 percent have this relationship with their fathers.. These children agree with their parents on most subjects, have a strong emotional tie – but they don't live near them and they don't have much regular contact with their mothers. 14.
Seven percent
of American adult children have "detached" relationship with their mothers: they don't see them, don't contact them, have little if any emotional connection. 15.
That's the least common relationship between the children and their mothers, but . . . unfortunately . . .
27 percent
of American adult children have "detached" relationship with their fathers – making that the most common type of relationship between adult-children and their fathers. 16.
Guilt.
16 percent of American adult children have an "obligatory" relationship with their parents – both their mothers and fathers. These children don't agree with their parents on most subjects, and they don't have close emotional ties. But they live near by so they feel have to spend time with their parents and to help if they're needed. And actually, more of them are providing assistance to their parents (30 percent) than those with even closer emotional relationships. 17.
69.4 percent
of American adults contact their mothers at least once a week. 18.
58.6 percent
of American adults contact their fathers at least once a week. 19.
58.9 percent
of American adults live within an hour from their mothers. 54.9 percent live within an hour's distance from their fathers. 20.
54.9 percent
of American adults live within an hour's distance from their fathers. 21.
About 20 percent
Of American fathers who don't live with their children, age zero to 18, about 20 percent never see, call or write to their children even once in the course of a year. 38.
About 15 percent
Of American mothers who don't live with their children, age zero to 18, about 15 percent never see their children in the course of a year, while 17 percent don't call or write to their children. 39.
About 16 percent
Of American fathers who don't live with their children, age zero to 18, about 16 percent see their children several times each week. 20 percent call or write to their children several times a week. 40.
About 29 percent
Of American mothers who don't live with their children, age zero to 18, about 29 percent see their children several times each week, while about 30 percent call or write to their children several times a week. 41.
471 miles
The mean amount of distance between American parents and the children they don't live with. But there's quite a difference between the distance between absent fathers – 424 miles – and absent mothers – 694 miles. 42.
10.8 years old
The mean age of U.S. children not living with their parents. 43.
6.9 years
The mean number years that a nonresident U.S. father has not been living with his children. 44.
3.8 years
The mean number years that a nonresident U.S. mother has not been living with her children. 45.
WORK-LIFE BALANCE
1978
The U.S. passed the Pregnancy Discrimination Act, which outlawed discrimination in hiring, firing, promotions or pay, on the basis of a woman's pregnancy.
1987
The U.S. Supreme Court upheld a California law requiring most employers give pregnant women up to four months of unpaid disability and the right to return to their job at the end of that time.
1993
The year the U.S. federal government enacted the Family and Medical Leave Act, which requires that eligible employees can take up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave for childbearing or care of a family member.
36 percent
During the period of 1981-1985, 36 percent of U.S. women pregnant with their first child quit their jobs while pregnant or soon after giving birth.
26 percent
During the period of 1996-2000, 26 percent of U.S. women pregnant with their first child quit their jobs while pregnant or soon after giving birth.
3.9 percent
of U.S. women who had given birth to their first child during the period of 1961-1965 were working by the time the child was a month old.
13.6 percent
of U.S. women who had given birth to their first child during the period of 1996-1999 were working by the time the child was a month old.
16.8 percent
of U.S. women who had given birth to their first child during the period of 1961-1965 were working by the time the child was a year old.
64.8 percent
of U.S. women who had given birth to their first child during the period of 1996-1999 were working by the time the child was a year old.
33.5 percent
of U.S. women who had given birth to their first child during the period of 1961-1965 were working by the time the child was five years old.
78.6 percent
of U.S. women who had given birth to their first child during the period of 1991-1995 were working by the time the child was five years old.
In 1950, sociologist Hollingshead wrote: “Lower-class families exhibit the highest prevalence of instability of any class . . . A companionate family is often a complicated one. It may include the natural chil-dren of the couple, plus the woman’s children from a previous legal or com-panionate relationship ; also there may be dependent children of the man living with the woman. Normally, when the lower-class family is broken, as in the higher classes, the mother keeps the children. However, the mother may desert her ’man’ for another man, and leave her children with him, her mother or sister, or social agency. In the Deep South and Elmtown, from 50 to 60 percent of lower-class family groups are broken once, and often more, by desertion, divorce, death, or separation, often due to imprisonment of the man, between marriage, legal or companionate, and its normal dissolution through the marriage of adult children and the death of aged parents. ¶ Economic insecurity is but one of a number of factors that give rise to this amount of instability. lower-class people are employed in the most menial, the poorest paid, . . . seasonal and cyclical, and of short duration. More-over, from one-half to two-third of the wives are gainfully employed outside the family; in may cases they are the sole support of the family. However, the problem of economic insecurity does not account for amoral behavior that ranges from the flagrant violation of conventional sex mores to open rebellion against formal agencies of social control.”
21 percent –
during the period of 1890 and 1920 – the increase in single women who were working.
100 percent –
during the period of 1890 and 1920 – the increase in married women who were working.
|
|
|
|
| Why mothers in 1920s Philadelphia worked –
|
|
|
|
|
– they were widows (22 percent);
– they were on their own financially because their husbands had either deserted them or were not giving them any financial support (24 percent);
– they had husbands who were ill (14 percent);
– their husbands didn't make enough money (29 percent); and
– the women preferred to work (11 percent).
|
|
|
|
|
Two out of every three Americans between the ages of 14 and 65
were expected to be in the armed forces or working (or have substitutes in their places) by 1943. That estimate did not include millions more who were in seasonal agricultural work, or were volunteering for the Red Cross and other wartime relief agencies.
22,000,000 women
were working in the U.S. in 1961.
By 1961,
Science News Letter estimated that “A young woman in the U.S. today can anticipate spending about 25 years of her married life working outside the home.”
“Low”
The percentage of married American women graduating from college in 1900-1919 who were working at age 30.
25 percent
of married American women graduating from college in 1920-1945 who were working at age 30.
25-30 percent
of married American women graduating from college in 1946-1965 who were working at age 30.
65 percent
of married American women graduating from college in 1966-1979 who were working at age 30.
80 percent
of married American women graduating from college in 1980-1990 who were working at age 30.
12.3 percent
of American women with juris doctorates were no longer attorneys within 10 years of graduation, in comparison to 4.0 percent of men, according to a 1993 survey.
10.7 percent
of American women with M.D.s who were no longer doctors within 10 years of graduation, in comparison to 3.7 percent of men, according to in a 1993 survey.
One-fourth
of female graduates of various Harvard professional schools are not in the workforce, according to a study.
16 percent more likely –
For every hour a parent works between six and nine in the evening, the child is 16 percent more likely to score in the bottom fourth in math tests, according to a US study.
"Thus, the individualist will tend to view the needs of the self and the family as distinct, and will experience conflict when there are demands made by both. In other words, the work and family domains are seen as exerting competing demands where addressing one will likely be at the expense of the other. As a result, when work time demands are high, individualists are bound to experience higher levels of work--family stressors and consequent strain than are collectivists."
30 percent
of American married mothers of children younger than six who were in the labor force in 1970.
60.8 percent
of American married mothers of children younger than six who were in the labor force in 2002.
55.4 percent
of U.S. mothers are married, live with their husbands, and are in the labor force.
53.3 percent
of U.S. mothers without present spouses are in the labor force.
57 percent
in the U.S. in 1977 who agreed with the statement that a wife should help her husband's career rather than have one of her own. 43 percent disagreed.
19 percent
in U.S. in 1998 still agreed with the statement that a wife should help her husband's career instead of having one of her own. In 20 years, the number of those who disagreed doubled – to 81 percent.
66 percent
of those surveyed in the U.S. in 1977 agreed with the statement that "it is much better for everyone involved if the man is the achiever outside the home and the woman takes care of the home and family." (34 percent opposed.)
34 percent
of those surveyed in the U.S. in 1977 opposed the statement that "it is much better for everyone involved if the man is the achiever outside the home and the woman takes care of the home and family."
34-38 percent
in the U.S. in 1998 agreed with the statement that "it is much better for everyone involved if the man is the achiever outside the home and the woman takes care of the home and family."
62-66 percent
in the U.S. in 1998 opposed the statement that "it is much better for everyone involved if the man is the achiever outside the home and the woman takes care of the home and family."
67 percent
of those surveyed in the U.S. in 1996 thought that both the husband and wife should earn an income.
31.0 percent
of U.S. mothers with infants were in the workforce in 1976.
54.6 percent
of U.S. mothers with infants who were in the workforce in 2002. The rate increased to a peak of 58.7 percent in 1998, and then for the first time since 1976, it began to drop or stay unchanged. However, it is unclear if that is because of the economic downturn or a lifestyle movement.
55 percent
of U.S. mothers with infant children are in the workforce.
One out of every six
U.S. children lived with a householder who was not in the labor force in 2000. In California, New York, and Mississippi, that figure rose to 21 percent. In Washington DC, it was 32 percent.
Seven million
U.S. married mothers were out of the labor force in 2003.
Six million mothers –
– 88 percent of the mothers who were out of the labor force – said that the primary reason they weren't working was because they were taking care of their homes and families. Of these six million women, five million of them had the fathers of their children in the labor force for the entire year.
160,000
– 16 percent – U.S. married fathers were out of the labor force in 2003 because they were taking care of their homes and families. For about 100,000 of these families, the mother was in the workforce the entire year.
45 percent
of those fathers out of the workforce who said that the primary reason they weren't working because they were ill or disabled.
"The economies in the Anglo countries tend to be stronger than those in China and Latin America, resulting in a higher average household income. Thus, working longer hours in the Anglo world may appear to be less necessary for family survival. It makes sense that where making a living is more difficult, people would be more accepting of working long hours. Similarly, higher unemployment rates than those in Anglo countries may force managers in less developed areas to protect their jobs by working longer hours. Such extended hours would be tolerated by the family as a necessary evil, or even celebrated as a further guarantee of job security in an uncertain job market where having a management job is certainly an unusual privilege. Furthermore, there may be greater extended family support in collectivist countries on matters such as babysitting children, thereby making it easier for families to manage with one or even both parents working long hours."
40 percent
of the American labor force works mostly nonstandard hours: they work in the evenings, overnight, on rotating schedules, or on weekends.
For one out of five
employed Americans, they work most of their hours outside the range of 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. or they have a schedule that regularly rotates.
In 35 percent
of American dual-earner couples with a child under five years old, one of the parents had an atypical work schedule.
One-third
of American single mothers work weekends.
One-fourth
of American single mothers work in late evenings or on rotating shifts.
More than half
of all American mothers with children under age five who work late or rotating schedules or weekends rely on two or more caregivers.
Just about 35 percent
of single mothers who work evenings eat with their children at least five days a week.
They have 2.7 times the risk of being suspended from school –
– "they" being children with parents who work nights.
Lower cognitive scores –
In a study, cognitive scores for children with mothers who ever worked nonstandard hours – evenings, nights, or variable schedules – were lower at 15, 24 and 36 months, when compared to the scores of children with mothers who worked standard hours.
". . . neither capitalist America nor socialist China had shown real signs of a significant transformation from patriarchal to gender-egalitarian power relationships in the past fifty years. The wife's recent achievement in economic independence via labor force participation does not easily translate into a gender-balanced power structure in the conjugal family. In the case of Detroit, we do not see an expected steady decline in husbands' power since the 1960s' cohorts where women begun to increasingly enter into the labor force. In the case of China, the finding is consistent with previous studies, which revealed that in urban Chinese families husbands tend to dominate the decision-making process."
24 percent
of all women in Canada were in the labor force in 1951.
60 percent
of all women in Canada were in the labor force in 1990.
Three times as likely –
U.S. mothers with graduate degrees are three times as likely to be working full-, rather than part-time.
63 percent
of U.S. mothers with at least one year of a college education were working in 2002, despite having had a child within the past year.
1998-2002
The only years with a decline of the mothers with infants in the U.S. labor force participation, since the Census started keeping records of this in 1976. It was a four percent drop – from 59 to 55 percent.
2.1 million
of U.S. mothers of infants were in the workforce in 2002. Of these, 1.9 million had jobs at the time of the Census, while the remainder were currently unemployed.
72 percent
of U.S. mothers with children, one year old or older, were in the labor force in 2002.
55 percent
of U.S. mothers with infants were in the labor force in 2002. Of these mothers, 61 percent of those over the age of 30 were working while just 39 percent of teenage mothers (15 to 19 years old) have jobs.
FAMILIES AT WORK
Why My Daddy Should Be Father of the Year . . . . Why My Mommy Should Be Mother of the Year . . . .
|
|
|
|
| 49 percent of kids say that one of the reasons their parents should be "parents of the year" is that their parents love them. A higher percentage actually mention "love" when talking about their fathers – but at least some analysis indicates that that's because it's, uh, filler. They don't really understand what daddies do, so they say "love," when they can't think of anything any else. But mommies, if this is any consolation to dads out there, are generally supposed to get the award because they are "nice" or the generic "good mother."
|
|
|
| |
