Modern Mores

Non-marital childbearing has increased significantly among women of all educational levels. Over the last quarter-century however, the largest increase is among college-educated women 32-38. In 1996, the percentage was 4%, today it is 24.5%. Among women 32-38 with only a high-school diploma the percentage giving birth to their first-born outside wedlock is 60%. For those with less than a high-school degree the percentage rises to 86.5%.