This statistic shows the number of children living with single divorced parents in the United States in 2020, by race. In 2020, ****** Asian children lived with their divorced single father.

This graph shows the Percentage of households led by a female householder with no spouse present with own children under 18 years living in the household in the U.S. in 2021, by state. In 2021, about 4.24 percent of Californian households were single mother households with at least one child.

Additional information on single mother households and poverty in the United States

For most single mothers a constant battle persists between finding the time and energy to raise their children and the demands of working to supply an income to house and feed their families. The pressures of a single income and the high costs of childcare mean that the risk of poverty for these families is a tragic reality. Comparison of the overall United States poverty rate since 1990 with that of the poverty rate for families with a female householder shows that poverty is much more prevalent in the latter. In 2021, while the overall rate was at 11.6 percent, the rate of poverty for single mother families was 23 percent. Moreover, the degree of fluctuation tends to be lower for single female household families, suggesting the rate of poverty for these groups is less affected by economic conditions.

The sharp rise in the number of children living with a single mother or single father in the United States from 1970 to 2022 suggests more must be done to ensure that families in such situations are able to avoid poverty. Moreover, attention should also be placed on overall racial income inequality given the higher rate of poverty for Hispanic single mother families than their white or Asian counterparts.

In 1990, 48.1 percent of all Black families with a single mother in the United States lived below the poverty level. In 2023, that figure had decreased to 25.9 percent. This is significantly higher than white households with a single mother. Poverty is the state of one who lacks a certain amount of material possessions or money. Absolute poverty or destitution is inability to afford basic human needs, which commonly includes clean and fresh water, nutrition, health care, education, clothing and shelter.

This dataset includes birth rates for unmarried women by age group, race, and Hispanic origin in the United States since 1970. Methods for collecting information on marital status changed over the reporting period and have been documented in: • Ventura SJ, Bachrach CA. Nonmarital childbearing in the United States, 1940–99. National vital statistics reports; vol 48 no 16. Hyattsville, Maryland: National Center for Health Statistics. 2000. Available from: http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/nvsr/nvsr48/nvs48_16.pdf. • National Center for Health Statistics. User guide to the 2013 natality public use file. Hyattsville, Maryland: National Center for Health Statistics. 2014. Available from: http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data_access/VitalStatsOnline.htm. National data on births by Hispanics origin exclude data for Louisiana, New Hampshire, and Oklahoma in 1989; for New Hampshire and Oklahoma in 1990; for New Hampshire in 1991 and 1992. Information on reporting Hispanic origin is detailed in the Technical Appendix for the 1999 public-use natality data file (see (ftp://ftp.cdc.gov/pub/Health_Statistics/NCHS/Dataset_Documentation/DVS/natality/Nat1999doc.pdf.) All birth data by race before 1980 are based on race of the child. Starting in 1980, birth data by race are based on race of the mother. SOURCES CDC/NCHS, National Vital Statistics System, birth data (see http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/births.htm); public-use data files (see http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data_access/Vitalstatsonline.htm); and CDC WONDER (see http://wonder.cdc.gov/). REFERENCES Curtin SC, Ventura SJ, Martinez GM. Recent declines in nonmarital childbearing in the United States. NCHS data brief, no 162. Hyattsville, MD: National Center for Health Statistics. 2014. Available from: http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/databriefs/db162.pdf. Martin JA, Hamilton BE, Osterman MJK, et al. Births: Final data for 2015. National vital statistics reports; vol 66 no 1. Hyattsville, MD: National Center for Health Statistics. 2017. Available from: https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/nvsr/nvsr66/nvsr66_01.pdf.

In 2022, there were about 4.15 million Black families in the United States with a single mother. This is an increase from 1990 levels, when there were about 3.4 million Black families with a single mother.

Single parenthood

The typical family is comprised of two parents and at least one child. However, that is not the case in every single situation. A single parent is someone who has a child but no spouse or partner. Single parenthood occurs for different reasons, including divorce, death, abandonment, or single-person adoption. Historically, single parenthood was common due to mortality rates due to war, diseases, and maternal mortality. However, divorce was not as common back then, depending on the culture.

Single parent wellbeing

In countries where social welfare programs are not strong, single parents tend to suffer more financially, emotionally, and mentally. In the United States, most single parents are mothers. The struggles that single parents face are greater than those in two parent households. The number of families with a single mother in the United States has increased since 1990, but the poverty rate of black families with a single mother has significantly decreased since that same year. In comparison, the poverty rate of Asian families with a single mother, and the percentage of white, non-Hispanic families with a single mother who live below the poverty level in the United States have both been fluctuating since 2002.

In 2023, there were about 6.65 million white, non-Hispanic families with a single mother living in the United States. This is a slight increase from 1990, when there were 6.4 million white families with a single mother living in the U.S.

In 2023, there were about 15.09 million children living with a single mother in the United States, and about 3.05 million children living with a single father. The number of children living with a single mother is down from its peak in 2012, and the number of children living with a single father is down from its peak in 2005.

Marriage and divorce in the United States

Despite popular opinion in the United States that “half of all marriages end in divorce,” the divorce rate in the U.S. has fallen significantly since 1992. The marriage rate, which has also been decreasing since the 1990s, was still higher than the divorce rate in 2021. Half of all marriages may not end in divorce, but it does seem that fewer people are choosing to get married in the first place.

New family structures

In addition to a falling marriage rate, fewer people in the U.S. have children under the age of 18 living in the house in comparison to 1970. Over the past decade, the share of families with children under 18, whether that be married couples or single parents, has stayed mostly steady, although the number of births in the U.S. has also fallen.

This dataset includes live births, birth rates, and fertility rates by race of mother in the United States since 1960. Data availability varies by race and ethnicity groups. All birth data by race before 1980 are based on race of the child. Since 1980, birth data by race are based on race of the mother. For race, data are available for Black and White births since 1960, and for American Indians/Alaska Native and Asian/Pacific Islander births since 1980. Data on Hispanic origin are available since 1989. Teen birth rates for specific racial and ethnic categories are also available since 1989. From 2003 through 2015, the birth data by race were based on the “bridged” race categories (5). Starting in 2016, the race categories for reporting birth data changed; the new race and Hispanic origin categories are: Non-Hispanic, Single Race White; Non-Hispanic, Single Race Black; Non-Hispanic, Single Race American Indian/Alaska Native; Non-Hispanic, Single Race Asian; and, Non-Hispanic, Single Race Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander (5,6). Birth data by the prior, “bridged” race (and Hispanic origin) categories are included through 2018 for comparison. SOURCES NCHS, National Vital Statistics System, birth data (see https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/births.htm); public-use data files (see https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data_access/VitalStatsOnline.htm); and CDC WONDER (see http://wonder.cdc.gov/). REFERENCES National Office of Vital Statistics. Vital Statistics of the United States, 1950, Volume I. 1954. Available from: https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/vsus/vsus_1950_1.pdf. Hetzel AM. U.S. vital statistics system: major activities and developments, 1950-95. National Center for Health Statistics. 1997. Available from: https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/misc/usvss.pdf. National Center for Health Statistics. Vital Statistics of the United States, 1967, Volume I–Natality. 1969. Available from: https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/vsus/nat67_1.pdf. Martin JA, Hamilton BE, Osterman MJK, et al. Births: Final data for 2015. National vital statistics reports; vol 66 no 1. Hyattsville, MD: National Center for Health Statistics. 2017. Available from: https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/nvsr/nvsr66/nvsr66_01.pdf. Martin JA, Hamilton BE, Osterman MJK, Driscoll AK, Drake P. Births: Final data for 2016. National Vital Statistics Reports; vol 67 no 1. Hyattsville, MD: National Center for Health Statistics. 2018. Available from: https://www.cdc.gov/nvsr/nvsr67/nvsr67_01.pdf. Martin JA, Hamilton BE, Osterman MJK, Driscoll AK, Births: Final data for 2018. National vital statistics reports; vol 68 no 13. Hyattsville, MD: National Center for Health Statistics. 2019. Available from: https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/nvsr/nvsr68/nvsr68_13.pdf.

This dataset includes teen birth rates for females by age group, race, and Hispanic origin in the United States since 1960.

Data availability varies by race and ethnicity groups. All birth data by race before 1980 are based on race of the child. Since 1980, birth data by race are based on race of the mother. For race, data are available for Black and White births since 1960, and for American Indians/Alaska Native and Asian/Pacific Islander births since 1980. Data on Hispanic origin are available since 1989. Teen birth rates for specific racial and ethnic categories are also available since 1989. From 2003 through 2015, the birth data by race were based on the “bridged” race categories (5). Starting in 2016, the race categories for reporting birth data changed; the new race and Hispanic origin categories are: Non-Hispanic, Single Race White; Non-Hispanic, Single Race Black; Non-Hispanic, Single Race American Indian/Alaska Native; Non-Hispanic, Single Race Asian; and, Non-Hispanic, Single Race Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander (5,6). Birth data by the prior, “bridged” race (and Hispanic origin) categories are included through 2018 for comparison.

National data on births by Hispanic origin exclude data for Louisiana, New Hampshire, and Oklahoma in 1989; New Hampshire and Oklahoma in 1990; and New Hampshire in 1991 and 1992. Birth and fertility rates for the Central and South American population includes other and unknown Hispanic. Information on reporting Hispanic origin is detailed in the Technical Appendix for the 1999 public-use natality data file (see ftp://ftp.cdc.gov/pub/Health_Statistics/NCHS/Dataset_Documentation/DVS/natality/Nat1999doc.pdf).

This paper examines the association between the Great Recession and real assets among families with young children. Real assets such as homes and cars are key indicators of economic well-being that may be especially valuable to low-income families. Using longitudinal data from the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing Study (N = 4,898), we investigate the association between the city unemployment rate and home and car ownership and how the relationship varies by family structure (married, cohabiting, and single parents) and by race/ethnicity (White, Black, and Hispanic mothers). Using mother fixed-effects models, we find that a one percentage point increase in the unemployment rate is associated with a -0.5 percentage point decline in the probability of home ownership and a -0.7 percentage point decline in the probability of car ownership. We also find that the recession was associated with lower levels of home ownership for cohabiting families and for Hispanic families, as well as lower car ownership among single mothers and among Black mothers, whereas no change was observed among married families or White households. Considering that homes and cars are the most important assets among middle and low-income households in the U.S., these results suggest that the rise in the unemployment rate during the Great Recession may have increased household asset inequality across family structures and race/ethnicities, limiting economic mobility, and exacerbating the cycle of poverty.

In 2023, there were about 1.18 million Black families with a single father living in the United States. This is an increase from 1990, when there were 472,000 Black families with a single father in the U.S.

This statistic shows the percentage of women who were the primary breadwinner in the household that were single mothers in the United States in 2014, by race. Among black women who were the primary income provider to the household, **** percent were single mothers in 2014.

Basic Demographic Indicators: Proportion of children born to unmarried mothers by Autonomous Community, nationality (spaniard/ foreign national) of the mother. Annual. Autonomous Communities and Cities.

This administrative dataset provides descriptive information about the families and children served through the federal Child Care and Development Fund (CCDF). CCDF dollars are provided to states, territories, and tribes to provide assistance to low-income families receiving or in transition from temporary public assistance, to obtain quality child care so they can work, or depending on their state's policy, to attend training or receive education. The Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Act of 1996 requires states and territories to collect information on all family units receiving assistance through the CCDF and to submit monthly case-level data to the Office of Child Care. States are permitted to report case-level data for the entire population, or a sample of the population, under approved sampling guidelines. The Summary Records file contains monthly state-level summary information including the number of families served. The Family Records file contains family-level data including single parent status of the head of household, monthly co-payment amount, date on which child care assistance began, reasons for care (e.g., employment, training/education, protective services, etc.), income used to determine eligibility, source of income, and the family size on which eligibility is based. The Child Records file contains child-level data including ethnicity, race, and date of birth. The Setting Records file contains information about the type of child care setting, the total amount paid to the provider, and the total number of hours of care received by the child. The Pooling Factor file provides state-level data on the percentage of child care funds that is provided through the CCDF, the federal Head Start region the grantee (state) is in and is monitored by, and the state FIPS code for the grantee. Units of Response: United States and Territories, CCDF Family Recipients, CCDF Children Recipients Type of Data: Administrative Tribal Data: No Periodicity: Annual Demographic Indicators: Ethnicity;Household Income;Household Size;Race SORN: Not Applicable Data Use Agreement: Not Applicable Data Use Agreement Location: https://www.icpsr.umich.edu/rpxlogin Granularity: Family;Individual Spatial: United States Geocoding: Tribe

This layer was developed by the Research & Analytics Group of the Atlanta Regional Commission, using data from the U.S. Census, to show various demographic and housing data by state House district in the state of Georgia (including the following categories: population, households, housing characteristics, age, and race/ethnicity), for 2000 and 2010.- - - - - -Base Attributes:DISTRICT = GA House DistrictPOPULATION = District Population (2010 Census)Name = GA House District NameTotal_Population_2011_2015_ACS = Total Population, 2011-2015 American Community Survey (ACS)profile_url = Web address of district profile - - - - - -Attributes from Census Bureau:Family_households = Family households, 2010Pct_Family_households = % Family households, 2010Family_HH_wOwnChild_un18yr = Family households with own children under 18 years, 2010Pct_Family_HH_wOwnChild_un18yr = % Family households with own children under 18 years, 2010Husband_wife_families = Husband-wife families, 2010Pct_Husband_wife_families = % Husband-wife families, 2010Hus_wife_families_wChild = Husband-wife families with children, 2010Pct_hus_wife_families_wChild = % Husband-wife families with children, 2010Single_parent_households = Single parent households, 2010Pct_Single_parent_households = % Single parent households, 2010Nonfamily_households = Nonfamily households, 2010Pct_Nonfamily_households = % Nonfamily households, 2010HH_with_individuals_un18yr = Households with individuals under 18 years, 2010Pct_HH_with_individuals_un18yr = % Households with individuals under 18 years, 2010- - - - - -Total_housing_units = Total housing units, 2010Occupied_housing_units = #, Occupied housing units, 2010Percent_Occupied_housing_units = %, Occupied housing units, 2010Vacant_housing_units = #, Vacant housing units, 2010Percent_Vacant_housing_units = %, Vacant housing units, 2010Owner_occupied_housing_units = #, Owner occupied housing units, 2010Pct_Owner_Occ_HousUnits = %, Owner occupied housing units, 2010Renter_occupied_housing_units = #, Renter occupied housing units, 2010Pct_Renter_Occ_Units = %, Renter occupied housing units, 2010- - - - - -Pop_under_age_19_2010 = Population under age 19, 2010Pop_ages_20_34_2010 = Population ages 20-34, 2010Pop_ages_35_44_2010 = Population ages 35-44, 2010Pop_ages_45_64_2010 = Population ages 45-64, 2010Pop_ages_65_over_2010 = Population ages 65 and over, 2010Pct_Pop_under_age_19_2010 = % Population under age 19, 2010Pct_Pop_ages_20_34_2010 = % Population ages 20-34, 2010Pct_Pop_ages_35_44_2010 = % Population ages 35-44, 2010Pct_Pop_ages_45_64_2010 = % Population ages 45-64, 2010Pct_Pop_ages_65_over_2010 = % Population ages 65 and over, 2010Pop_under_age_19_2000 = Population under age 19, 2000Pop_ages_20_34_2000 = Population ages 20-34, 2000Pop_ages_35_44_2000 = Population ages 35-44, 2000Pop_ages_45_64_2000 = Population ages 45-64, 2000Pop_ages_65_over_2000 = Population ages 65 and over, 2000Pct_Pop_under_age_19_2000 = % Population under age 19, 2000Pct_Pop_ages_20_34_2000 = % Population ages 20-34, 2000Pct_Pop_ages_35_44_2000 = % Population ages 35-44, 2000Pct_Pop_ages_45_64_2000 = % Population ages 45-64, 2000Pct_Pop_ages_65_over_2000 = % Population ages 65 and over, 2000Chg_Pop_Under_19 = Change in Population Under 19 (2000-2010)Chg_Pct_Pop_Under_19 = Change in Percent Population Under 19 (2000-2010)Chg_Pct_pop_ages_20_34 = Change in Percent population ages 20-34 (2000-2010)Chg_Pct_pop_ages_20_34 = Change in Percent population ages 20-34 (2000-2010)Chg_pop_ages_35_44 = Change in population ages 35-44 (2000-2010)Chg_Pct_pop_ages_35_44 = Change in Percent population ages 35-44 (2000-2010)Chg_pop_ages_45_64 = Change in population ages 45-64 (2000-2010)Chg_Pct_pop_ages_45_64 = Change in Percent population ages 45-64 (2000-2010)Chg_pop_ages_65_over = Change in population ages 65 and over (2000-2010)Chg_Pct_pop_ages_65_over = Change in Percent population ages 65 and over (2000-2010)- - - - - -Non_Hisp_White_2010 = Non-Hispanic White, 2010Non_Hisp_Black_2010 = Non-Hispanic Black, 2010Non_Hisp_AsianPI_2010 = Non-Hispanic Asian/Pacific Islander, 2010Non_Hisp_Other_Biracial_2010 = Non-Hispanic Other Races (includes biracial), 2010Hisp_All_races_2010 = Hispanic, All races, 2010Pct_Non_Hisp_White_2010 = % Non-Hispanic White, 2010Pct_Non_Hisp_Black_2010 = % Non-Hispanic Black, 2010Pct_Non_Hisp_AsianPI_2010 = % Non-Hispanic Asian/Pacific Islander, 2010Pct_Non_Hisp_Other_Bi_2010 = % Non-Hispanic Other Races (includes biracial), 2010Pct_Hisp_All_races_2010 = % Hispanic, All races, 2010Non_Hisp_White_2000 = Non-Hispanic White, 2000Non_Hisp_Black_2000 = Non-Hispanic Black, 2000Non_Hisp_AsianPI_2000 = Non-Hispanic Asian/Pacific Islander, 2000Non_Hisp_Other_Biracial_2000 = Non-Hispanic Other Races (includes biracial), 2000Hisp_All_races_2000 = Hispanic, All races, 2000Pct_Non_Hisp_White_2000 = % Non-Hispanic White, 2000Pct_Non_Hisp_Black_2000 = % Non-Hispanic Black, 2000Pct_Non_Hisp_AsianPI_2000 = % Non-Hispanic Asian/Pacific Islander, 2000Pct_Non_Hisp_Other_Bi_2000 = % Non-Hispanic Other Races (includes biracial), 2000Pct_Hisp_All_races_2000 = % Hispanic, All races, 2000Chg_Non_Hisp_White = Change in Non-Hispanic White Population (2000-2010)Chg_Non_Hisp_Black = Change in Non-Hispanic Black Population (2000-2010)Chg_Non_Hisp_AsianPI = Change in Non-Hispanic Asian/Pacific Islander Population (2000-2010)Chg_Non_Hisp_Other_Biracial = Change in Non-Hispanic Other (includes biracial) Population (2000-2010)Chg_Hisp_Population = Change in Hispanic Population (2000-2010)Chg_Pct_Non_Hisp_White = Change in Percent Non-Hispanic White (2000-2010)Chg_Pct_Non_Hisp_Black = Change in Percent Non-Hispanic Black (2000-2010)Chg_Pct_Non_Hisp_AsianPI = Change in Percent Non-Hispanic Asian/Pacific Islander (2000-2010)Chg_Pct_Non_Hisp_Other_Biracial = Change in Percent Non-Hispanic Other (includes biracial) (2000-2010)Chg_Pct_Hisp_Population = Change in Percent Hispanic Population (2000-2010)- - - - - -Population_2010 = Population, 2010Population_2000 = Population, 2000Population_Change_2000_2010 = Population Change, 2000-2010Pct_Population_Change_2000_2010 = % Population Change, 2000-2010- - - - - -Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Atlanta Regional CommissionDates: 2000, 2010For additional information, please visit the Atlanta Regional Commission at www.atlantaregional.com.

Table of INEBase Proportion of children born to unmarried mothers by nationality (spaniard/foreign national) of the mother. Annual. Basic Demographic Indicators

There are over **** million single parent families in the United Kingdom as of 2023, compared with **** million in 2022.

The data on relationship to householder were derived from answers to Question 2 in the 2015 American Community Survey (ACS), which was asked of all people in housing units. The question on relationship is essential for classifying the population information on families and other groups. Information about changes in the composition of the American family, from the number of people living alone to the number of children living with only one parent, is essential for planning and carrying out a number of federal programs.

The responses to this question were used to determine the relationships of all persons to the householder, as well as household type (married couple family, nonfamily, etc.). From responses to this question, we were able to determine numbers of related children, own children, unmarried partner households, and multi-generational households. We calculated average household and family size. When relationship was not reported, it was imputed using the age difference between the householder and the person, sex, and marital status.

Household – A household includes all the people who occupy a housing unit. (People not living in households are classified as living in group quarters.) A housing unit is a house, an apartment, a mobile home, a group of rooms, or a single room that is occupied (or if vacant, is intended for occupancy) as separate living quarters. Separate living quarters are those in which the occupants live separately from any other people in the building and which have direct access from the outside of the building or through a common hall. The occupants may be a single family, one person living alone, two or more families living together, or any other group of related or unrelated people who share living arrangements.

Average Household Size – A measure obtained by dividing the number of people in households by the number of households. In cases where people in households are cross-classified by race or Hispanic origin, people in the household are classified by the race or Hispanic origin of the householder rather than the race or Hispanic origin of each individual.

Average household size is rounded to the nearest hundredth.

Comparability – The relationship categories for the most part can be compared to previous ACS years and to similar data collected in the decennial census, CPS, and SIPP. With the change in 2008 from “In-law” to the two categories of “Parent-in-law” and “Son-in-law or daughter-in-law,” caution should be exercised when comparing data on in-laws from previous years. “In-law” encompassed any type of in-law such as sister-in-law. Combining “Parent-in-law” and “son-in-law or daughter-in-law” does not represent all “in-laws” in 2008.

The same can be said of comparing the three categories of “biological” “step,” and “adopted” child in 2008 to “Child” in previous years. Before 2008, respondents may have considered anyone under 18 as “child” and chosen that category. The ACS includes “foster child” as a category. However, the 2010 Census did not contain this category, and “foster children” were included in the “Other nonrelative” category. Therefore, comparison of “foster child” cannot be made to the 2010 Census. Beginning in 2013, the “spouse” category includes same-sex spouses.

These datasets contain measures of socioeconomic and demographic characteristics by U.S. census tract for the years 1990-2022 and ZIP code tabulation area (ZCTA) for the years 2008-2022. Example measures include population density; population distribution by race, ethnicity, age, and income; income inequality by race and ethnicity; and proportion of population living below the poverty level, receiving public assistance, and female-headed or single parent families with kids. The datasets also contain a set of theoretically derived measures capturing neighborhood socioeconomic disadvantage and affluence, as well as a neighborhood index of Hispanic, foreign born, and limited English.

Graph and download economic data for Consumer Unit Characteristics: Percent White, Asian, and All Other Races, Not Including African American by Composition of Consumer Unit: One Parent, at Least One Child Under 18 (CXUWHTNDOTHLB0609M) from 1984 to 2023 about parent, consumer unit, asian, white, percent, child, and USA.