American Notes Population

An old saw says that "first comes love, then comes marriage, then comes pushing a baby carriage," but that idea appears to be out of style. According to a new Census Bureau report, fewer and fewer single women who become pregnant with their first child get married before the baby is born.

Analysts say the increase in out-of-wedlock births results in part from greater social acceptance of single motherhood. But other studies cite more dismaying factors: a shortage of men who earn enough to support a family and the high divorce rate. Many unwed mothers, says the Census Bureau, have come to believe that "they may be better off in the long run by relying more on the support of their parents and relatives . . . than by entering a potentially unstable marriage." But there is another problem: almost half of female-headed households live in poverty, compared with 8% of two-parent families.

CHART: NOT AVAILABLE

CREDIT: TIME Graphic by Steve Hart

CAPTION: % of U.S. women who conceived out of wedlock but married before the child was born