{"id":9986,"date":"2025-11-26T18:51:35","date_gmt":"2025-11-26T18:51:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/strongermarriages\/?p=9986"},"modified":"2025-11-26T18:51:35","modified_gmt":"2025-11-26T18:51:35","slug":"nearly-half-of-childless-us-women-plan-to-keep-it-that-way","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/strongermarriages\/2025\/11\/nearly-half-of-childless-us-women-plan-to-keep-it-that-way.html","title":{"rendered":"Nearly Half of Childless US Women Plan to Keep it That Way"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Tatiana Syrikova \/ Pexels<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Amidst the growing concerns of a dwindling US birth rate, the recent 2025 American Family Survey<\/a> highlighted the decreasing interest in US women in becoming mothers. The study is conducted by Deseret News<\/em>, Wheatley University, and Bringham Young University\u2019s Study of Elections and Democracy and was conducted between August 6 to the 18th<\/sup>. The study found that amongst those who are below the age of 50 without children, only 45% stated that they wanted children. Thirty-eight percent stated either \u201cprobably not\u201d or definitely not.\u201d Seventeen percent were unsure.<\/p>\n

Childless men were more likely than childless women to say they wanted to have children. 50% of men said that they either \u201cdefinitely\u201d or \u201cprobably\u201d wanted children, while only 40% of women said the same. Amongst those who \u201cdefinitely\u201d or \u201cprobably\u201d didn\u2019t want children, one third of men said as much, while 44% of childless women said \u201cno\u201d to kids. Seventeen percent in both groups stated they were unsure. Meanwhile, despite a CDC report that the birth rate has dropped to an all-time low of 1.6 births per woman, those surveyed did not perceive any fertility issues in the US. Twenty-six percent stated they believed the number of babies being born today is \u201ctoo few\u201d while 16% stated there were \u201ctoo many.\u201d Thirty-four percent said they didn\u2019t know while 24% stated they felt the right number were being born.<\/p>\n

Affordability appeared to be a major factor in concerns about having children. Seventy-one percent disagreed that raising children is affordable, an increase from 51% in 2015. Only 14% agreed that raising children is affordable. Forty-three percent cited insufficient money as a barrier to having children, while a lack of personal desire came in second with 22%. Positive perceptions of marriage had also dwindled, with 45% stating that \u201csociety is better off when more people are married,\u201d down from 53% in 2018. 56% stated that marriage \u201cmakes children and families better off financially,\u201d which had dropped from 64%. However, outright opposition to marriage was low, with only 17% agreeing that marriage is an \u201coutdated institution.\u201d<\/p>\n

Researchers noted that while the findings were \u201cnormatively worrisome\u201d they were not a reason for panic. Yet. \u201cWe do not want to overstate: the sky is not falling and outright opposition to marriage is rare. But it is concerning that fewer Americans recognize the positive role marriage can play in both society and the lives of individuals. For example, children with married parents tend to experience greater protection from the worst forms of poverty,\u201d said researchers. \u201cMarriage is also an engine for positive effects throughout society: a better educated populace, a stronger workforce, extended financial and emotional support, and others. One does not need to be married to believe that the institution is deeply important for society. For these reasons, any slide in public norms about marriage is worth a great deal of attention.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Amidst the growing concerns of a dwindling US birth rate, the recent 2025 American Family Survey highlighted the decreasing interest in US women in becoming mothers. The study is conducted by Deseret News, Wheatley University, and Bringham Young University\u2019s Study of Elections and Democracy and was conducted between August 6 to the 18th. The study…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":516,"featured_media":9989,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fbia_status":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-9986","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"\nNearly Half of Childless US Women Plan to Keep it That Way<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"A new survey finds fewer U.S. women want children, with affordability and shifting views on marriage fueling America\u2019s record-low birth rate.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/strongermarriages\/2025\/11\/nearly-half-of-childless-us-women-plan-to-keep-it-that-way.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta 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