new york times single women
Poslato: 13 Mar 2026 07:34
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Article about new york times single women:
New research shows that the education-marriage gap is closing. Marriage and Women Over 40. In the mid-1980s, a now infamous Newsweek article declared that a single, college-educated 40-year-old woman was more likely to die in a terrorist attack than ever walk down the aisle.
>> ENTER THE SITE <<
The claim, repeated in movies and sitcoms, convinced generations of women that if they weren’t married by 40, it probably wasn’t going to happen. The debate was revived again last week when a study from the Pew Research Center reported that high earning, college-educated women have a dwindling pool of like-minded marriage partners. Now, a briefing paper from the Council on Contemporary Families is trying to set the record straight about marriage, education and women. For college-educated women who hope to marry someday, the news is good. In the paper, the economists Betsey Stevenson and Adam Isen of the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School analyze marriage data from the Census and the 2008 American Community Survey. They note that historically, women with a college degree have been the “least likely” group of women to ever marry, but those numbers have been changing with each passing decade. In 1950, 90 percent of white female high school graduates had married by age 40, but fewer than 75 percent of college-educated white women had tied the knot by that age. By 1980, college-educated women began marrying at higher rates and closing the education-marriage gap. That year, 92 percent of 40-year-old white female college graduates had married, compared with 96 percent of similar high school graduates. Since then, marriage rates have fallen for all women, but now the chance of marriage by 40 is about the same with or without a college degree. In 2008, 86 percent of 40-year-old white female college graduates were married, compared to 88 percent of those with only a high school degree. Women who drop out of high school are the least likely to marry, and college educated women are the least likely to divorce. The report also shed light on the marriage-over-40 question. It found that college-educated women who are unmarried at age 40 are twice as likely to marry in the next 10 years as unmarried 40-year-olds with just a high school degree. Among 40-year-old white women who had never married in 1990, 20 percent of the college graduates went on to marry within 10 years, compared to just 10 percent of those with a high school degree. Educated women are also more likely to report being happy in their marriages than less educated women, the report concluded. The story is different for African-American women. Overall marriage rates are lower among African-Americans, but black women don’t incur a “marriage penalty” when they pursue college degrees. Among black women, 70 percent of college graduates are married by 40, whereas only about 60 percent of black high school graduates are married by that age. Notably, whether a man marries is less influenced by education, and men show similar marriage rates across all education groups. However, from 1980 to 2008, white males with any college education were more likely to marry than those who had never gone to college. Among black men in 2008, 76 percent of black male college grads were married by 40, compared to just 63 percent of high school graduates. Dr. Stevenson said the shifts in marriage are occurring at a time when couples are less likely to marry for financial security or economic benefits and more likely to choose partners based on the “companion benefits” of marriage. She calls it the rise of the “hedonic marriage.” “That’s marriage where you’re together for the joy of having another person to share your life with,” Dr. Stevenson said. “That’s where marriage is headed — couples who are together because they enjoy life more when they’re together.” Comments are no longer being accepted. I remember when that statistic came out, about how women were more likely to be shot out of the sky by terrorists than to get married after 40. How insulting! That statistic caused undue anxiety for a generation of women, and it has not reflected my experience. Most of my girlfriends finished graduate school. None of us got married before 35. We’re all still married. None of us settled. I’m so glad I waited for the right guy. I got married for the first, and so far only, time in 1997 at age 42. My spouse and I are hitting all these demographic touchstones — I make more than he does, I have more education, etc. etc. We have no children. As a solid Baby Boomer, it makes me laugh to be part of another so-called “trend.” I had never envisioned myself as a married person, I was very happy as a single person. Now, I’m a happy married person. Things just worked out. When I was single, I never stressed about not being married, or having a “man” in my life. But when he walked into it, I was open to the idea. I do have friends now who are still single at age 54/55 and are sad about it. But it’s just how things worked out for my cohort. The “hedonic” marriage for men means housework, childcare and less and less sex.. FROM TPP — The statistics suggest otherwise. The more housework men do, the more sex they have. See Gager, C. “Who Has the Time The Relationship Between Household Labor Time and Sexual Frequency.” The Journal of Family Issues. Why all the talk about women who have never married? I think the far more interesting question is men who never marry, or wait to get married in middle age. I was recently persuing the profiles of personal ads in Denver. I was very surprised how many 45+ year old men who had never been married, but claimed to be financially secure. Maybe men, too, have been putting marriage on a back burner until they feel OK financially and professionally sound, and then thinking about marriage. Check that out researchers! I’m wondering if there is a corresponding trend: men who look for intelligent self-sufficient women (Hi KIM. Love you!). I suspect that there is an ever increasing number of men who are actively seeking relationships that are more partner-like. There may be some kind of Newtonian physics at work here, a law of (social) inertia. Don’t overlook the force of habit. The longer you do something, the easier it becomes to continue doing it. If a person has been unmarried for 40 years, there may be a sense of comfort in staying single. I became a widower at age 59, after 35 years of marriage, and at first I wanted to remarry immediately. Now that 7 years have passed, I’ve gradually accepted the idea of living alone, and I’m just a little reluctant to give up my freedom. But marriage still looks pretty good.
new york times single women
Article about new york times single women:
New research shows that the education-marriage gap is closing. Marriage and Women Over 40. In the mid-1980s, a now infamous Newsweek article declared that a single, college-educated 40-year-old woman was more likely to die in a terrorist attack than ever walk down the aisle.
>> ENTER THE SITE <<
The claim, repeated in movies and sitcoms, convinced generations of women that if they weren’t married by 40, it probably wasn’t going to happen. The debate was revived again last week when a study from the Pew Research Center reported that high earning, college-educated women have a dwindling pool of like-minded marriage partners. Now, a briefing paper from the Council on Contemporary Families is trying to set the record straight about marriage, education and women. For college-educated women who hope to marry someday, the news is good. In the paper, the economists Betsey Stevenson and Adam Isen of the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School analyze marriage data from the Census and the 2008 American Community Survey. They note that historically, women with a college degree have been the “least likely” group of women to ever marry, but those numbers have been changing with each passing decade. In 1950, 90 percent of white female high school graduates had married by age 40, but fewer than 75 percent of college-educated white women had tied the knot by that age. By 1980, college-educated women began marrying at higher rates and closing the education-marriage gap. That year, 92 percent of 40-year-old white female college graduates had married, compared with 96 percent of similar high school graduates. Since then, marriage rates have fallen for all women, but now the chance of marriage by 40 is about the same with or without a college degree. In 2008, 86 percent of 40-year-old white female college graduates were married, compared to 88 percent of those with only a high school degree. Women who drop out of high school are the least likely to marry, and college educated women are the least likely to divorce. The report also shed light on the marriage-over-40 question. It found that college-educated women who are unmarried at age 40 are twice as likely to marry in the next 10 years as unmarried 40-year-olds with just a high school degree. Among 40-year-old white women who had never married in 1990, 20 percent of the college graduates went on to marry within 10 years, compared to just 10 percent of those with a high school degree. Educated women are also more likely to report being happy in their marriages than less educated women, the report concluded. The story is different for African-American women. Overall marriage rates are lower among African-Americans, but black women don’t incur a “marriage penalty” when they pursue college degrees. Among black women, 70 percent of college graduates are married by 40, whereas only about 60 percent of black high school graduates are married by that age. Notably, whether a man marries is less influenced by education, and men show similar marriage rates across all education groups. However, from 1980 to 2008, white males with any college education were more likely to marry than those who had never gone to college. Among black men in 2008, 76 percent of black male college grads were married by 40, compared to just 63 percent of high school graduates. Dr. Stevenson said the shifts in marriage are occurring at a time when couples are less likely to marry for financial security or economic benefits and more likely to choose partners based on the “companion benefits” of marriage. She calls it the rise of the “hedonic marriage.” “That’s marriage where you’re together for the joy of having another person to share your life with,” Dr. Stevenson said. “That’s where marriage is headed — couples who are together because they enjoy life more when they’re together.” Comments are no longer being accepted. I remember when that statistic came out, about how women were more likely to be shot out of the sky by terrorists than to get married after 40. How insulting! That statistic caused undue anxiety for a generation of women, and it has not reflected my experience. Most of my girlfriends finished graduate school. None of us got married before 35. We’re all still married. None of us settled. I’m so glad I waited for the right guy. I got married for the first, and so far only, time in 1997 at age 42. My spouse and I are hitting all these demographic touchstones — I make more than he does, I have more education, etc. etc. We have no children. As a solid Baby Boomer, it makes me laugh to be part of another so-called “trend.” I had never envisioned myself as a married person, I was very happy as a single person. Now, I’m a happy married person. Things just worked out. When I was single, I never stressed about not being married, or having a “man” in my life. But when he walked into it, I was open to the idea. I do have friends now who are still single at age 54/55 and are sad about it. But it’s just how things worked out for my cohort. The “hedonic” marriage for men means housework, childcare and less and less sex.. FROM TPP — The statistics suggest otherwise. The more housework men do, the more sex they have. See Gager, C. “Who Has the Time The Relationship Between Household Labor Time and Sexual Frequency.” The Journal of Family Issues. Why all the talk about women who have never married? I think the far more interesting question is men who never marry, or wait to get married in middle age. I was recently persuing the profiles of personal ads in Denver. I was very surprised how many 45+ year old men who had never been married, but claimed to be financially secure. Maybe men, too, have been putting marriage on a back burner until they feel OK financially and professionally sound, and then thinking about marriage. Check that out researchers! I’m wondering if there is a corresponding trend: men who look for intelligent self-sufficient women (Hi KIM. Love you!). I suspect that there is an ever increasing number of men who are actively seeking relationships that are more partner-like. There may be some kind of Newtonian physics at work here, a law of (social) inertia. Don’t overlook the force of habit. The longer you do something, the easier it becomes to continue doing it. If a person has been unmarried for 40 years, there may be a sense of comfort in staying single. I became a widower at age 59, after 35 years of marriage, and at first I wanted to remarry immediately. Now that 7 years have passed, I’ve gradually accepted the idea of living alone, and I’m just a little reluctant to give up my freedom. But marriage still looks pretty good.
new york times single women