Report to Congress on Out-of-Wedlock Childbearing

Book excerpt: Nearly a third of all births occur outside of marriage. This report summarizes scientific information on non-marital fertility & addresses these questions: 1. what are the trends in non-marital childbearing? 2. what are the consequences of non-marital childbearing for children, adults, & for the public? 3. what are the causes of the dramatic increase in non-marital fertility, what factors have contributed to the upsurge in non-marital childbearing? how can we prevent pregnancy or childbearing among unmarried persons & what policies & actions should we take to ameliorate the negative consequences associated with non-marital childbearing & parenthood.