Understanding Psychology (10th Ed)

 
Module 39 
Adulthood 
425
try to understand their accomplishments in terms of the broader meaning of life. 
Although people may begin for the fi rst time to label themselves as “old,” many also 
develop a sense of wisdom and feel freer to enjoy life (Baltes & Kunzmann, 2003; 
Miner-Rubino, Winter, & Stewart, 2004; Ward-Baker, 2007).
Marriage, Children, and Divorce: 
Family Ties
In the typical fairy tale, a dashing young man and a beautiful young woman marry, 
have children, and live happily ever after. However, that scenario does not match 
the realities of love and marriage in the 21st century. Today, it is just as likely that 
the man and woman would fi rst live together, then get married and have children, 
but ultimately get divorced. 
The percentage of U.S. households made up of unmarried couples has increased 
dramatically over the last two decades. At the same time, the average age at which 
marriage takes place is higher than at any time since the turn of the last century. 
These changes have been dramatic, and they suggest that the institution of marriage 
has changed considerably from earlier historical periods. 
When people do marry, the probability of divorce is high, especially for younger 
couples. Even though divorce rates have been declining since they peaked in 1981, 
about half of all fi rst marriages end in divorce. Before they are 18 years old, two-fi fths 
of children will experience the breakup of their parents’ marriages. Moreover, the 
rise in divorce is not just a U.S. phenomenon: The divorce rate has accelerated over 
the last several decades in most industrialized countries. In some countries, the 
increase has been enormous. In South Korea, for example, the divorce rate quadru-
pled from 11% to 47% in the 12-year period ending in 2002 (Schaefer, 2000; Lankov, 
2004; Olson & DeFrain, 2005). 
Changes in marriage and divorce trends have doubled the number of single-
parent households in the United States over the last two decades. Almost 25% of 
all family households are now headed by one parent compared with 13% in 1970. 
If present trends continue, almost three-fourths of American children will spend 
some portion of their lives in a single-parent family before they turn 18. For chil-
dren in minority households, the numbers are even higher. Almost 60% of all 
black children and more than a third of all Hispanic children live in homes with 
only one parent. Furthermore, in most single-parent families, the children live 
with the mother rather than the father—a phenomenon that is consistent across 
racial and ethnic groups throughout the industrialized world (U.S. Bureau of the 
Census, 2000). 
What are the economic and emotional consequences for children living in 
homes with only one parent? Single-parent families are often economically less 
well off, and this economic disadvantage has an impact on children’s opportuni-
ties. More than a third of single-mother families with children have incomes below 
the poverty line. In addition, good child care at an affordable price is often hard 
to fi nd. Furthermore, for children of divorce, the parents’ separation is often a 
painful experience that may result in obstacles to establishing close relationships 
later in life. Children may blame themselves for the breakup or feel pressure to 
take sides (U.S. Bureau of the Census, 2000; Wallerstein et al., 2000; Liu, He, & 
Wu, 2007). 
Most evidence suggests, however, that children from single-parent families are 
no less well adjusted than those from two-parent families. In fact, children may be 
more successful growing up in a harmonious single-parent family than in a two-
parent family that engages in continuous confl ict (Harold et al., 1997; Clarke-Stewart 
et al., 2000; Kelly, 2000; Olson & DeFrain, 2005).
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