Number of People in a Family
An educational, fair use website
| Bibliographic Entry | Result (w/surrounding text) |
Standardized Result |
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|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Households,1 Families, and Married Couples, 1890-2002. InfoPlease. 2006. | [see table below] | 3.21 (USA 2002) |
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| America's Homes Get Bigger and Better. ABC News. 27 December 2005. | "Today's average family size is 2.6 people." | 2.6 (USA 2005) |
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| Factsheet: Six Billion and Beyond… Why World Population Is Still Growing. Population Action International. 2005. | "Worldwide, average family size is currently just under three children." | >3.0 (World 2005) |
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| 2004 American Community Survey Data Profile Highlights. US Census Bureau. |
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3.18 (USA 2004) |
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| Table AVG2. Average Number of People per Family Household, by Race and Hispanic Origin/1/, Marital Status, Age, and Education of Householder: March 2002 [xls]. US Census. 2002. |
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3.15 (USA 2002) |
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Twentieth Century American television tried to paint an image of the perfect wholesome American family. Sitcoms portraying the average American family was composed of a working father, a homely mother and the "ideal" number of children, 2.4. In today's America, a new portrait of the average American family must be created and with fewer characters.
It seems the American family has gotten smaller over the last century. Today the average number of children is 3.18 while the average in 1940 was 3.76. There are many changes in American society that might have contributed to this decrease. For example there has been a reduction in the number of children born per woman. In the early Twentieth Century, it was not uncommon to see a woman with five or more children. Since then different methods of birth control have been created and there has been widespread use of contraceptives. Women are also choosing to have children later in their childbearing years, making it more difficult to have large families. This may be due to their participation in the workforce. Women are no longer traditional homemakers; instead they find time for their independent careers.
The decrease in the number of children per woman is not the only factor responsible for the smaller American family. Another factor that must be considered is the change in family structure. There is a higher percentage of children living in a mother-only household. Between 1960 and 1999 the percentage escalated from 8% to 27%.
In industrialized countries all around the world the average family size has fallen significantly. In China the average family size decreased from 4.81 in 1973 to 3.38 in 20031. The dramatic drop is due to the enforcement of the "One Child Policy" implemented to conserve Chinese resources and prevent overpopulation. In Canada the average family size was 3.7 in 1973 and 3.0 in 20012. The average family size for each of these countries seems to dwell around 3 people. With social and economic success the focal point of life in an industrialized country, couples are choosing to have relatively small families. Children today can prove to be a financial burden on some families especially when it comes to educating them.
Developing countries no longer have a big demand for large families. With advancements in child birth there is no need to have "extra children" for fear of child mortality. Many regions of the world where women are expected to have as many as 6 children in her lifetime are being educated in family planning to reduce their population. This way the countries' resources would be sufficient for its population.
| All households | Families | Married couples | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Date | Number | Average population per household |
Number | Average population per family |
Number |
| June 1890 | 12,690,000 | 4.93 | - | - | - |
| April 1930 | 29,905,000 | 4.11 | - | - | 25,174,000 |
| April 1940 | 34,949,000 | 3.67 | 32,166,000 | 3.76 | 26,571,000 |
| March 1950 | 43,554,000 | 3.37 | 39,303,000 | 3.54 | 34,075,000 |
| April 1955 | 47,874,000 | 3.33 | 41,951,000 | 3.59 | 36,251,000 |
| March 19602 | 52,799,000 | 3.35 | 45,111,000 | 3.67 | 39,254,000 |
| March 1965 | 57,436,000 | 3.32 | 47,956,000 | 3.70 | 41,689,000 |
| March 1970 | 63,401,000 | 3.14 | 51,586,000 | 3.58 | 44,728,000 |
| March 1975 | 71,120,000 | 2.94 | 55,712,000 | 3.42 | 46,951,000 |
| March 1980 | 80,776,000 | 2.76 | 59,550,000 | 3.29 | 49,112,000 |
| March 1985 | 86,789,000 | 2.69 | 62,706,000 | 3.23 | 50,350,000 |
| March 1990 | 93,347,000 | 2.63 | 66,090,000 | 3.17 | 52,317,000 |
| March 1995 | 98,990,000 | 2.65 | 69,305,000 | 3.19 | 53,858,000 |
| March 1996 | 99,627,000 | 2.65 | 69,594,000 | 3.20 | 53,567,000 |
| Dec. 1997 | 101,018,000 | 2.64 | 70,241,000 | 3.19 | 53,604,000 |
| March 1998 | 102,528,000 | 2.62 | 70,880,000 | 3.18 | 54,317,000 |
| March 1999 | 103,874,000 | 2.61 | 71,535,000 | 3.18 | 55,849,000 |
| March 2000 | 104,705,000 | 2.62 | 72,025,000 | 3.17 | 56,497,000 |
| March 2002 | 109,297,000 | 2.58 | 74,329 | 3.21 | 56,747,000 |
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- Population, Ministry of Commerce of P.R. China
- Families: A Canadian ProfileCanadian Council on Social Development
Stacey Johnson -- 2006