Changing Relationship Between Women and Marriage

            

             This paper presents an in-depth discussion about the changing .

             relationship between women and marriage. Economic factors, a rise in .

             feminism, parents' influence, attitudes about sex, educational .

             pursuits, and divorce statistics are discussed and their influence on .

             women's attitudes toward marriage are explored. Cultural changes that .

             have impacted women's lives are also examined. The purpose of the .

             paper is to explore the changes affecting women, their attitudes .

             toward marriage, and their expectations of marriage. This paper will .

             primarily concentrate on the question of why women delay marriage. The .

             sources used to develop this paper are published journals, the text .

             for this course along with other books related to this issue, and the .

             Internet. .

             The Changing Relationship Between Women and Marriage.

             Over the past four decades there has been substantial changes .

             in the attitudes toward marriage among women in the United States. .

             These attitudes relate to gender roles and social changes in today's .

             society and have contributed to women marrying later than their .

             ancestors married. Studies show American women are waiting longer.

             than ever to get married. Their median age at first marriage hit a .

             record high of 24.5 years in 1994, up from 20 years in the mid 1950's .

             (Crispell, 1996). That's the oldest age since the Census Bureau .

             started to ask about age at marriage in 1890. Of course postponing .

             marriage means an increase, at any given time, in the number of people.

             who have never wed, and that is also reflected in the census study. .

             From 1970 to 1994 the number of Americans aged 18 and over who never .

             married more than doubled from 21.4 million to 44.2 million. .

             Additionally, women may be less likely to marry in the future. .

             Projections show the proportion of never married women increasing .

             between 1992 and 2010 for all age groups under 55 (Crispell).

             According to Allen & Kalish (1984), the timing of a first .

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