Dr. Jacquie Del Rosario, relationship coach: “There’s a wave of women either rethinking marriage or skipping it”

Numerous studies have found that marriage rates in the United States are declining and one expert has outlined some potential causes behind the trend.

Census data shows that marriage rates have dropped from 16.3 per 1,000 women in 2011, to 14.9 per 1,000 women in 2021. That fall across the decade is symptomatic of a broader trend that has seen the United States’ marriage rate fall from 78.8% in 1949 to an all-time low of 46.8% in 2022.

There are an infinite number of factors behind this change, but relationship coach Dr. Jacquie Del Rosario believes that much of it is the consequence of a change of thinking. She argues that societal changes have allowed women to feel less pressured to get married.

“There’s a wave of women either rethinking marriage or skipping it altogether — and it’s getting louder every year. It’s about autonomy, peace and building lives around what feels right, not what tradition dictates,” Del Rosario told the New York Post.

“Our generation has more freedom and more options than our parents ever dreamed of. Economic independence means nobody has to marry for survival,” Del Rosario explained.

In the past women were often expected to take on a domestic role, with fewer options for employment and career advancement. Now that there are greater opportunities for women in the workplace, there is less pressure on marriage as the only route to a stable life.

“The emotional labor women saw their moms shoulder — organizing households, managing everyone’s happiness — doesn’t look appealing if it’s not balanced. Nobody wants to ‘lose themselves’ to unpaid work or someone else’s dreams. If marriage is on the table, it’s going to be on equal terms, without sacrificing selfhood.”

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