Family Size In America: Are Large Families Back?
Professional moms have twice as many kids at home, on average, than their high-powered counterparts did back in 1977, according to a 2002 report from the Families and Work Institute. And in a 2000 study, sociologist Martin found that college-educated women who put off motherhood until their 30s are suddenly having families almost as big as everyone else's. "That's historically unprecedented," he says.So professional moms have twice as many kids at home than their 1977 counterparts did. But how telling is this statistic? Certainly, the working world is different for women than it was back then, fresh off the impression that a 'working woman' meant being a teacher or a nurse. With fewer women in the workplace, the stereotypical mannish female executive of the 80s was probably emerging for a reason - they had to, (or thought they had to) blend in with the big boys to get ahead. With women reaching a critical mass, that need is less pressing today.
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Wealthier families in general seem to be warming up to the idea of moving past a tasteful two. "Our survey from 2002 found that 12 percent of higher-income women had three or more children," says Anjani Chandra, a researcher at the National Center for Health Statistics. "The figure from 1995 is only about 3 percent."
Part of the reason that wealthier people are having more kids may simply be that there are more of them. "In this country there's been a pretty dramatic increase in people with higher incomes," says demographer Morgan. "And if you like kids and can afford them, why not?"
Also, the statistic applies only to working moms - there is no mention of how many working women have no kids at all. With the rising demands for childcare, flextime, and other mommy benefits, combined with the continued pressure to keep a balance of females in the workplace, we may just be more valuable than ever.
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