Boom of the 1950s was an aberration. Today's developments actually climax long-term trends: The birthrate has been dropping since the 1820s; di- vorce has been slowly rising since the Civil War.
Despite the travails of the past two decades, there is no evidence that Americans today are turning their backs on marriage per se. Of the chil- dren under age 18 today, the authors estimate, 90 percent will eventu- ally marry; 50 percent will marry and divorce; and 33 percent will marry, divorce, and remarry.
Yet,...