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American Singles

by Kevin Stith

A large group of the entire American population (43 percent) is composed of singles—that is, those who are unmarried, have never been married, have no partner (including widowed, separated and divorced individuals) or simply, are living alone.

There are about 95.7 million singles scattered across America and each of them reasons for being single. For some American singles, living a solitary life is a vocation, while for others; it is a temporary state - either by choice of by chance.

The increasing number of American singles results from a number of factors, according to experts specializing in population studies. Among the factors is the increasing age of marriage in the United States. While young men and women (in their mid-twenties) in the 1970s married early; today, most of people in the same age bracket prefer to marry at a later age.

Another factor that affects the increasing number of American singles is the rising number of single parents or divorced or separated men and women in United States. Based on U.S. Census Bureau's statistics, 44 percent of the total number of households in the U.S. is maintained by unmarried men and women. The percentage of American families headed by single parents doubled from 1970 to 2000.

Furthermore, societal changes (how young adults or young singles date these days) affect the rising number of American singles. Relationships over the years have taken on new forms, including cyber relationships. Although a lot of American singles try online dating with the hope of finding the right person, many end up finding partners with invented or ‘virtual' personalities. Hence, lasting relationships that lead to marriage are rarely achieved.

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