Less than half of U.S. kids today live in a ‘traditional’ family
Fewer than half (46%) of U.S. kids younger than 18 years of age are living in a home with two married heterosexual parents in their first marriage. This is a marked change from 1960, when 73% of children fit this description, and 1980, when 61% did, according to a Pew Research Center analysis of recently released American Community Survey (ACS) and Decennial Census data.
According to our analysis, today 15% of children are living with two parents who are in a remarriage. It is difficult to accurately identify stepchildren in the ACS data, so we don’t know for sure if these kids are from another union, or were born within the remarriage. However, data from another Census source—the 2013 Current Population Survey (CPS)—indicates that 6% of all children are living with a stepparent.
One of the largest shifts in family structure is this: 34% of children today are living with an unmarried parent—up from just 9% in 1960, and 19% in 1980. In most cases, these unmarried parents are single. However, a small share of all children—4%—are living with two cohabiting parents, according to CPS data. Because of concerns about the quality of the new 2013 ACS data on same-sex marriage, we do not separate out the very small number of children whose parents are identified as in this type of union, but instead fold them into this “single parent” category.
How the American Family Has Changed  | % ofus children living with  | 73  | 61  | Two manied parents  | 46  | in their first marriage  | 1960 1980 2013  | Two married parents  | 14  | 15  | 16  | one or both remarried  | 19  | 34  | Single parent  | 5  | No parent at home  | Note: Based on children ages 17 and younger. Married  | parents refer to those in a heterosexual marriage only. In  | 2013 the single parent" category includes the small share  | of children living with two parents who are Scoha biting or in a  | same-sex ma arriage Data on same -sex marriage and  | cohabitation arriage is not available for earlier marriage years.  | Source: Pew Research Center analysis of 1960 and 1980  | Decennial Census (1% IPUMS) and 2013 American  | Community Survey (1% IPUMS)  | PEW RESEARCH CENTER 