The two bar charts illustrate changes in the number of marriages and divorces in the USA, as well as the marital status of adult Americans, between 1970 and 2000. The marital status is categorized into four groups: married, not married, widowed, and divorced.
The data shows that the number of marriages declined from 1970 to 2000, although it remained higher than the number of divorces throughout the period. Additionally, the proportion of married individuals was the highest among the marital statuses in both 1970 and 2000.
Examining the chart on the ‘Number of Marriages and Divorces in the USA,’ we see that the number of marriages remained stable at 2.5 million from 1970 to 1980 but gradually decreased to 2 million by 2000. In contrast, the number of divorces increased moderately from 1 million in 1970, peaking at approximately 1.5 million in 1980, before declining back to 1 million by 2000, a level similar to that at the start of the period.
Turning to the ‘Marital Status of Adult Americans,’ the proportion of married individuals was the highest in both 1970 and 2000, accounting for 70% and around 60% respectively. The category of never married followed, rising from approximately 12% in 1970 to 20% in 2000, an increase of 8 percentage points over the period. Similarly, the percentage of divorced individuals increased from about 2% in 1970 to around 8% in 2000. However, the percentage of widowed individuals declined from roughly 6% in 1970 to 5% in 2000.