EMBARGOED UNTIL: 12:01 A.M. EDT, MAY 28, 1998 (THURSDAY) Public Information Office CB98-88 301-457-3030/301-457-3670 (fax) 301-457-4067 (TTD) e-mail: pio@census.gov Ken Bryson/Lynne Casper 301-457-2465/2416 Family Composition Begins to Stabilize in the 1990s, Census Bureau Reports Traditional families -- married couples with children -- have begun to stabilize as a percentage of all families in the 1990s and the growth of single-parent families -- those maintained by a mother or father with no spouse present-- has slowed, according to a report released today by the Commerce Department's Census Bureau. The embargoed tabulations can be accessed at http://www.census.gov/dcmd/ www/embargo/embargo.html. The report, Household and Family Characteristics: March 1997, P20-509, will be available after the release time on the Internet at http://www.census.gov/population/www/socdemo/hh-fam.html. "The perceived decline of the American family is vanishing and the '90s represents a stabilization period," said Ken Bryson, co-author of the report. "For example, the percentage of married couples with children fell from 50 percent to 37 percent of all families between 1970 and 1990. It only dropped 1 percentage point (to 36 percent) since then." Lynne Casper, the report's other author, said, "Growth in the proportion of single-parent families had slowed in the meantime." "The percentage of single-parent families doubled between 1970 and 1990, from 6 percent to 12 percent of all families," she said. "Since 1990, it has only increased two percentage points (to 13 percent)." A "family group" includes all family living arrangements: families, related subfamilies, and unrelated subfamilies. A household is a person or group of persons who live in a housing unit. A family is a group of two or more people (one of whom is the householder, the person in whose name the housing unit is owned or rented) living together and related by birth, marriage or adoption. Most of the information in this report comes from the March 1997 Current Population Survey. Some estimates may be based on data obtained from earlier surveys conducted by the Census Bureau. As with all surveys, data are subject to sampling and other sources of error. Then and Now Then in 1990: 1) Married couples with own children under 18 made up 26 percent of all households. 2) There were 2.63 people per household. 3) 51 percent of all families had no own children under 18. 4) 24 percent of families with own children under 18 were maintained by one parent. 5) 14 percent of one-parent family groups were father-child family groups. 6) 33 percent of mother-child family groups had a never-married mother. Now in 1997: 1) Married couples with own children under 18 make up 25 percent of all households. 2) There are 2.64 people per household.* 3) 51 percent of all families have no own children under 18.* 4) 28 percent of families with own children under 18 were maintained by one parent. 5) 17 percent of one-parent family groups are father-child family groups. 6) 41 percent of mother-child family groups have a never-married mother. *These values for 1997 are not statistically different from the values for 1990.-X-The Census Bureau pre-eminent collector and provider of timely, relevant and quality data about the people and economy of the United States. In more than 100 surveys annually and 20 censuses a decade, evolving from the first census in 1790, the Census Bureau provides official information about America's people, businesses, industries and institutions.
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