Most American Women Only Have 1 or 2 Children
More American parents are choosing to have only one or two children, not only in large cities but nationwide.
According to a recent article from The Cut, "Nearly two-thirds of women with children now have two or one — i.e., an oldest, a youngest, but no middle."
The finding shows a significant change in the average size of an American family when compared to decades ago.
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As also noted in the report, back in 1976, the Pew Research Center conducted a study which revealed that a couple with four children was "the most common family unit." Furthermore, 25 percent of families back then had three children, while 24 percent had two and just 11 percent had one child.
As for why more and more couples are opting to limit their family size to only having one or two children, factors like finances and changing attitudes are being pointed to.
The Cut also notes that millennials have become more inclined to marry at a later age and they are also OK with taking their time before starting a family.
A USA Today report adds that another possible reason for why more families are smaller is because it costs more to raise children now. Citing stats provided by Pew, the report notes that raising a child in 1960 typically costs less than $200,000, but as recently as 2013, that number has gone up to nearly $250,000.
While new trends suggest that middle children could become harder to find in the future, there are still many of them today, and there will be a holiday celebrated in their honor next month.
Middle Child Day will be celebrated on Aug. 12, a Sunday, and its intent is to "recognize middle born children and to acknowledge their place in their families."
An article published earlier this year on Prevention.com took a closer look at the idea of some people being affected by the so-called "Middle Child Syndrome."
Experts, including personality psychologist Julia Rohrer, April Bleske-Rechek, Ph.D. and professor of psychology at the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire and Catherine Salmon, Ph.D. and professor of psychology at the University of Redlands in California, agree that the notion that middle children are adversely affected by their birth order is not supported by evidence.
Still, Salmon said that middle children could grow to become better negotiators because they lack the kind of advantages eldest and youngest kids have and they might also be more reliant on their friends and siblings during times of trouble.
