The charts illustrate marriage and divorce rates in the United States between 1970 and 2000, as well as the marital status of adult Americans in 1970 and 2000.
Overall, the number of marriages declined over the period, while divorces rose until 1980 before falling again. In terms of marital status, the proportion of married adults decreased, whereas the percentages of people who had never married or were divorced increased.
In 1970, there were about 2.5 million marriages and approximately 1 million divorces. Marriage rates remained stable at around 2.5 million in 1980, but then fell to roughly 2.3 million in 1990 and 2 million in 2000. By contrast, divorces increased from 1 million in 1970 to a peak of about 1.4 million in 1980, before declining gradually to around 1.1 million in 1990 and 1 million in 2000.
Regarding marital status, around 70% of adults were married in 1970, compared with about 60% in 2000. The proportion of those who had never married rose from roughly 15% to about 20%. Similarly, the percentage of divorced individuals increased from around 2-3% to approximately 8%. The figure for widowed adults showed a slight decrease over the period.
In summary, the data indicate a gradual shift away from marriage and a modest rise in divorce and singlehood over these three decades.