Commentary

About Mothers, Not Mother's Day

Following the metrics of mother's day, this Pew Research Center report sheds light on the demographics of today's motherhood by comparing women who gave birth in 2008 with those who gave birth in 1990, based on data from the National Center for Health Statistics and the Census Bureau. The report is authored by Gretchen Livingston and D'Vera Cohn.

The extended report, beyond the Executive Summary, presents results of a nationwide Pew Research Center survey that asked a range of questions about parenthood.

Among the key findings of this report:

·      Mothers of newborns are older now than their counterparts were two decades ago. In 1990, teens had a higher share of all births (13%) than did women ages 35 and older (9%). In 2008, 10% of births were to teens, compared with 14% to women ages 35 and older. Each race and ethnic group had a higher share of mothers of newborns in 2008 who are ages 35 and older, and a lower share who are teens, than in 1990

·      41% of births were to unmarried women in 2008, including most births to women in their early 20s. In 1990, 28% of births were to unmarried women. The unmarried-mother share of births has increased most sharply for whites and Hispanics, although the highest share is for black women

·      White women made up 53% of mothers of newborns in 2008, down from 65% in 1990. The share of births to Hispanic women has grown dramatically, to one-in-four

·      54% of mothers of newborns had at least some college education in 2006, an increase from 41% in 1990. Among mothers of newborns who were ages 35 and older, 71% had at least some college education

The demography of motherhood in the United States has shifted strikingly in the past two decades, says the report. Compared with mothers of newborns in 1990, today's mothers of newborns are older and better educated. They are less likely to be white and less likely to be married.

In 1990, there were more births to teenagers than to women ages 35 and older. By 2008, that had reversed. 14% of births were to older women and 10% were to teens. Births to women ages 35 and older grew 64% between 1990 and 2008, increasing in all major race and ethnic groups.

Another notable change during this period was the rise in births to unmarried women. In 2008, 41% of births in the United States were to unmarried women, up from 28% in 1990. The share of births that are non-marital is highest for black women, followed by Hispanics, whites and Asians, but the increase over the past two decades has been greatest for whites.

Motherhood, 1990 to 2008 (% of Births by Characteristics of Mother)

 

% of Mothers

Characteristic

1990

2008

Percentage Point Change

Age

 

 

 

   <20

13%

10%

-3

   20-34

78

75

-3

   35+

9

14

+5

Mother's Race

 

 

 

   White

65

53

-12

   Black

16

15

-1

   Hispanic

14

24

+10

   Asian

3

6

+3

Mother's Marital Status

 

 

 

   Married

72

59

 -13

   Unmarried

28

41

+13

Source: National Center for Health Statistics/PewResearch, May 2010

The shift in characteristics of motherhood over the past two decades is linked to a complex mixture of demographic and behavioral changes. This analysis examines and explains these trends using data from the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS) and the U.S. Census Bureau. A separate section (found in the complete report), based on a Pew Research Center survey, explores the reasons people say they became parents and examines public attitudes about key trends shaping today's birth patterns.

The recasting of American motherhood takes place against a backdrop of relative stability in the total number of births, 4.3 million in 2008, compared with 4.2 million in 1990. The number had risen each year from 2003 to 2007 before declining by about 66,000; the decrease appears to be linked to the economic downturn.

There are fewer women in the prime childbearing years now than in 1990, as the youngest members of the giant Baby Boom generation have aged into their mid-40s. Changes in the race and ethnic makeup of young women have helped keep birth numbers relatively level.

Share of Births by Nativity of Mother (% of Total)

 

Native Born

Foreign Born

1990

85%

15%

2004

76

24

Source: National Center for Health Statistics/PewResearch, May 2010

Another influence on births is the nation's growing number of immigrants, who tend to have higher birth rates than the native born (although those rates have declined in recent years). The share of births to foreign-born mothers, 15% of U.S. births in 1990, has grown at least 60% through 2004. Births to foreign-born women in 2004 accounted for the majority of Hispanic (61%) and Asian (83%) births.

According to Pew Research Center population projections, 82% of the nation's population growth through 2050 will be accounted for by immigrants who arrived in the U.S. after 2005 and their descendants, assuming current trends continue. Of the 142 million people added to the population from 2005 to 2050, according to the projections, 50 million will be the children or grandchildren of new immigrants.

When Americans are asked what is the ideal number of children for a family, the most popular answer, according to the survey, is "two." And, among women with children at the end of their reproductive years, ages 40-44 in 2006, 43% had two. An additional 22% each had one or three children, 8% had four and 4% had five or more.

Share of Births by Education of Mother (Average 1988-1992 & 2004-2008)

 

Education

 

< High School

High School Grad

Some College or More

1990 Avg.

20%

39

41

2006 Avg.

20

26

54

Source: PewResearchCenter, May 2010

Since 1990, birth rates have risen for all women ages 30 and older. Although in some cases the number of births is small, the rate increases have been sharpest for women in the oldest age groups, 47% for women ages 35-39 and 80% for women ages 40-44, for example.

This delay in age of motherhood is associated with delay in age of marriage and with growing educational attainment. The more education a woman has, the later she tends to marry and have children. Birth rates also have risen for the most educated women, those with at least some college education, while being relatively stable for women with less education. These dual factors have worked together to increase the education levels of mothers of newborns.

Read the full report by downloading the PDF here, or the complete Executive Summary here.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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