moksha wrote:1. Later age of marriage
2. Availability of birth control
3. Abortion
4. Video games and late-night television
5. Restricted family size for enhanced quality of life purposes
6. Unaffordable single family dwellings
7. Gubbermint is putting something in the water to sap bodily fluids.
Speaking anecdotally, I honestly think people's attitudes have changed towards child rearing.
At the office I work at where there are +/- 40 mostly college educated professionals making solid incomes, there is a dramatic difference in terms of the relationships of those under 40 and those over 50. The few people in their 40's seem to be the transition group between these two largely dissimilar groups.
Those over 50 have all been married. All but one is still married to their only spouse to whom they were married before their 30's. They all have had multiple children with the exception of the one person who divorced and never remarried. He also happens to be the CEO and his relationship style today is much more similar to that of the under 40 cohort.
The under-40 cohort is the majority cohort in our office making up around 3/4 of the staff. About a third are married, a few are in committed partnerships with one engage to be married later this year, and the rest are single or in relationships that began within a year or so. Only one of the under-40 cohort married before the age of 25 and she is one of two who do not have at least an undergraduate degree. Of this group, two have two kids. The rest do not have any children. None of the couples who are not married have children together. I would estimate I've heard at least five of them state they will never have kids and even express disdain towards children and people who raise them. There is a real movement among some to make the lack of children a sign of responsible adulthood.
The 40 to 50 cohort is more diverse. There have been two 1st marriages this year, one being a guy who I guess decided it was time to settle down and the other a woman who had been in a long-term relationship. While she never said this, my impression from what she did say was that she was waiting for him to get comfortable with the idea of marriage. Neither have kids, and neither currently want them as they approach the point nature will bless and consecrate that decision. Another co-worker has been with his high school sweetheart for twenty years, married about fifteen of those, and has three kids under the age of fifteen. Two in this cohort are also married to each other and have one kid who is almost college-age. There are two single guys, one of whom is in a relationship that began within the last year but has made the decision to move in together. Neither have had kids. Another married a couple of years ago and had a kid about the same time. They were definitely sowing their wild oats before that and marriage seemed to come with having a kid. There is a bi-sexual guy with a partner with whom he lives. And then one couple without kids.
Subtracting out the 50+ cohort, if my office were representative we'd be far below replacement levels and it has more to do with lifestyle decisions than anything else.