We need families.

The decline in organized traditional families is hurting just about all aspects of our society. I understand that the world is changing and with that, changes in family dynamics may not be viewed as a big deal. However, research seems to indicate otherwise. Even with this intriguing and somewhat controversial research outcomes, many people are entirely ignoring the statistics and waiting for the world to change to fit around them and their agendas. I would like to focus on three things specifically throughout this post, 1. the need for families, 2. the trends that are preventing families, and 3. the issues we are, and will face if this "family problem" is not solved.

Families are built in support systems. They are just there for us, even if we don't necessarily want them to be there, we are kind of stuck with them until we decide to move out and create a life on our own. But to break it down even more, lets first focus on the individual. As humans we are designed to be "social creatures". We desire and look for attention from others. A need for intimacy in our lives spans much further than just a sexually intimate relationship with a partner. We need emotional support and we need to feel attached to someone. People who experience a disconnect within their family of origin be it from a divorce for example are much more likely to carry that with them and struggle in a marriage of their own, because that emotional support was messed with. Having families creates the future, sustains the present, and carries on the past.

There are several trends today that are hurting the family unit. More and more people are choosing to "experience life" before getting married and having a family. This is causing an increase in "delayed marriage". Statistics show that in the years 1950-1970 the average age for women to get married was 20.5, in 2015 that age had grown to 28. Many people choose to travel the world for many years. There is no problem with seeing the world, none at all. However, if this is your excuse to not start a family, you may see why it is a somewhat poor excuse later on.  The culture in the United States has become very individualistic in this sense. We are so wrapped up in gaining personal pleasure and experience BEFORE our lives "end" with settling down. Next, there is an extremely large number of people living alone. It is understood that in some cases this is out of the individuals control, but can lead to some negative affects. Because we are social creatures as mentioned before, if we choose to live alone, we are either stripping ourselves of that interaction, or we look for it and may end up finding it through dangerous means. In 2009 more than 31.7 million Americans lived alone. Birth rates have dropped from 30.1 births per 1000 women in 1910 to a staggering 13.9 in 2008. The employment rate of mothers with children younger than 6 (age as indicated is important because many children older than 6 are already involved in school full time) has increased from 23.8% in 1950 to 62.6% in 2007. If a mother is not there to care for a child that is relying on her during these beginning stages of life, what can we expect from that child? With these many trends we are seeing, what thoughts have come to your mind? Isn't this a problem? More and more people are struggling with mental health in this day and age, could we connect this with the fewer number of healthy families in the United States?

According to the documentary "Demographic Winter" without sub-replacement, example: immigration, it will only take 1-2 generations for our population to decline. Why is a decrease in population a big deal? If we do not have adequate numbers to replace people in the workplace, our economy will drop, people will have to work longer, people will have to work harder, all to just maintain the living standard we enjoy today. It would be nearly impossible for a lesser population to maintain, much less improve our economy or living standard. They refer to this as Human Capitol and it is something that has led many countries to entice people to create families with bounties.There has already been a noticeable shortage in people studying for and getting jobs in certain fields. If we have a smaller population, it is less likely for there to be an adequate amount of engineers or doctors in the world. These shortages will turn into crippling problems very quickly.  According to a preliminary study on family structure and the affects of that on mental health, has shown that children born into a non-traditional families are at a disadvantage. Mental health can become debilitating. Fewer people on the earth, less mothers in the home, longer working years, dropping economy and growth in mental health may be the exact recipe for disaster none of us saw coming.

Classmates blogs: https://kenziefer.blogspot.com/2019/05/other-links.html

Sources:
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5559994/
Lauer & Lauer : Marriage and Family in America
The New Economic Reality: Demographic Winter
Photo: KOP Photography