The stats by education level are surprising given the increasing difficulty of survival on a single income without roommates. I’m left to gather that marriage as an institution is losing popularity, with informal (to the government) long-term partnerships conferring sufficient desired benefits.
If one defines “single” as “lives alone/with platonic roommates,” sure. I’ve been with my partner for three years and live alone because of geography, but I would not consider myself single.
The article does address this. 20% of unmarried 40-year-olds are cohabitating. So that still leaves 20% of all 40-year-olds as never-married and not currently cohabitating.
The stats on education level were surprising to me too, though it does make sense as education is correlated with wealth, health, and long-term planning.
The stats by education level are surprising given the increasing difficulty of survival on a single income without roommates. I’m left to gather that marriage as an institution is losing popularity, with informal (to the government) long-term partnerships conferring sufficient desired benefits.
It says in the article that couples forgoing marriage account for a some of this, but it’s mostly people remaining single.
If one defines “single” as “lives alone/with platonic roommates,” sure. I’ve been with my partner for three years and live alone because of geography, but I would not consider myself single.
The article does address this. 20% of unmarried 40-year-olds are cohabitating. So that still leaves 20% of all 40-year-olds as never-married and not currently cohabitating.
The stats on education level were surprising to me too, though it does make sense as education is correlated with wealth, health, and long-term planning.