Changing Marriage Patterns Since 1970: What’s Going On, and Why?

Abstract

We review evidence on the declining rate of marriage and increasing average age at marriage in the United States since 1970. Cultural and demographic/economic explanations for these trends are then described and contrasted. We then examine marriage rates and ages at marriage in a comparative context, with data from the United Kingdom, Sweden, and Japan as well as the United States. Although there is substantial cross-national variation, all four nations show basically similar trends, suggesting that there are common underlying causes. We argue that the logic and evidence favoring demographic and economic explanations are more compelling than those favoring cultural explanations, and that cultural changes are secondary to changing economic realities.