In America & Europe, Marriage Trends Continue Steep Decline
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Seeing these images of Alexandra Vittekova, lensed by Sergi Jasanada for ‘Novias de Espana’ — generally considered the best wedding magazine in Spain — reminds me that marriage trends are declining worldwide. Two years ago I wrote Vogue Spain Can’t Help Pope Benedict Inspire Marriage Vows, and posted this graph on marriage trends in America and Europe.
There have been no major reversals in the gradual erosion of marriage in developed countries. It’s important to clarify that trends of family stability are often stronger in the Scandinavian countries’ untraditional family units. Not marrying doesn’t reflect a cavalier attitude about family structure and stability.
In America the decline in marriage that accompanied the recession is very dramatic. Pew Research wrote last month that trends in an upswing in cohabitation, single-person households and other adult living trends — as opposed to marriage — are steep.
The rate fell among every age and education group except adults age 65. The trend to not marry remains greatest among less-educated Americans, as does the tendency to divorce.
