Fewer women are getting married and they’re waiting longer
to tie the knot when they do decide to walk down the aisle. That’s according to
a new Family Profile from the National Center for Family and Marriage Research
(NCFMR) at Bowling Green State University.
According to “Marriage: More than a Century of Change,” the
U.S. marriage rate is 31.1, the lowest it’s been in over a century. That equals
roughly 31 marriages per 1,000 married women. Compare that to 1920, when the
marriage rate was a staggering 92.3.
Since 1970, the marriage rate has declined by almost 60
percent. “Marriage is no longer compulsory,” said Dr. Susan Brown, co-director
of the NCFMR. “It’s just one of an array of options. Increasingly, many couples
choose to cohabit and still others prefer to remain single.”