College grads in U.S. tend to partner with each other – especially if their parents also graduated from college
In 2019, 81% of household heads with a bachelor’s degree or more education had a spouse or partner who was also a college graduate.
Numbers, Facts and Trends Shaping Your World
In 2019, 81% of household heads with a bachelor’s degree or more education had a spouse or partner who was also a college graduate.
Key trends in marriage and family life in the United States.
As of 2021, 25% of 40-year-olds in the United States had never been married, a significant increase from 20% in 2010.
Younger women, women with a postgraduate degree and Democratic women are more likely to keep their last name after marriage.
Among married couples in the United States, women’s financial contributions have grown steadily over the last half century. Even when earnings are similar, husbands spend more time on paid work and leisure, while wives devote more time to caregiving and housework.
Among adults ages 18 to 34, 69% of those who have never been married say they want to get married one day.
Americans are more pessimistic than optimistic about the institution of marriage and the family. At the same time, the public is fairly accepting of diverse family arrangements, though some are seen as more acceptable than others.
On key economic outcomes, single adults at prime working age increasingly lag behind those who are married or cohabiting
47% of U.S. adults say single women raising children on their own is generally a bad thing for society, an increase of 7 points since 2018.
Adults – particularly men – who are in same-sex marriages have a somewhat different demographic profile from adults in opposite-sex marriages.
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