families and children Flashcards
statistics about american childbearing
- most families have 1-3 kids
- in 2021, 40% born to unmarried parents
- 1/2 of women not married have first kid when cohabitating
- many children are involved with more than 2 parents
- there are more adults spending much of their lives without children
different ways people become single parents
- young adults having children either alone or not ready for commitment
- older women who are single decide to have children
- divorced people who aren’t remarried
fertility
the number of children born in a society or among a particular group
total fertility rate
the number of children born to the average woman in her lifetime
what total fertility rate does a country have to have to usually grow?
more than 2.1 or so
reasons for high fertility rates among latinos
- descended from relatively recent immigrants who come from countries with higher fertility rates
- common for groups typically with lower levels of education
- the immigrant population includes many young, healthy adults
women with … education have … children
less, more
- some women stop education after they have children or postpone childbearing
- women with more education risk giving up higher incomes and career status (opportunity cost)
opportunity cost
the price one pays for choosing the less lucrative of the available options
adoption in three categories
private: 43%, mostly infants
public: 55%, average age 6
international adoptions: now just 2%
1973, roe v wade
right to abortion as a privacy matter
2022, dobbs v jackson
states can ban abortion (first time USA withdrew a constitutional right)
how many abortions were performed in the US in 2020? what trimester?
~900,000, 92% in the first trimester
policy as of october 2024
illegal in 13 states, banned 6-15 weeks in 7 states, protections in others
infertility
the failure of a couple to have a successful pregnancy despite deliberately having sex without contraception
potential causes of infertility
age, overall health, smoking, obesity, history of STIs
what percentage of american adults live without children? what is their demographic?
15%; women with higher education and professional careers
what are the three major changes in children’s living arrangements?
more diversity, inequality, social change increasing cultural acceptance
family transitions include:
- relationships with adults changing or ending
- new parenting standards and practices
- complex relationships with other children
- economic components of struggles
parenting
the activity of raising a child
parents provide three kinds of skills and resources to their children
socialization, social bonds, social networks
newfound meaning of childhood
children have become fewer and more precious; more emotional value than economic
consumer culture
consumer culture sells parenting advice and seemingly infinite opportunities to buy a perfect childhood
intensive motherhood
cultural pressure on women to devote more time, energy, and money to raising their children
snowplow parenting
for some high-income parents; clearing any obstacles in their child’s path to success
common beneficial aspects of parenting
supportiveness, monitoring, discipline (when healthy)
in 2022, how many children were estimated to live with same-sex parents
360,000
male provider ideal
the father as an economic provider and authority figure for his children
involved father ideal
the father as an emotional nurturing companion who bonds with his children as well as providing for them
what is “the anxious generation”
decline in play-based childhood, rise of phone0based childhood
how much could parents of a typical family with two children expect to spend?
between $175,000 and $370,000 to raise each child up to age 17, depending
on how rich the family is
