The hidden forces behind America’s baby bust
About this episode
The episode explores the reasons behind the decline in birth rates in America and the challenges of family life.
Why are Americans having fewer children, even though many say they want larger families? Host Megan McArdle talks with author Tim Carney about how professional ambition, personal autonomy and intensive parenting have made family life more daunting. They discuss why Americans are marrying later, how workplaces and communities could make raising children easier, and whether stronger family norms can be revived without bringing back the inequalities of the past. Subscribe to The Washington Post here .
People in this episode
Host: Megan McArdle
Guest: Tim Carney
Topics covered
- baby bust
- family life
- professional ambition
- personal autonomy
- intensive parenting
- marriage trends
- family norms
Keywords
- baby bust
- family
- parenting
- marriage
- workplace
- community
- inequality
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: The Washington Post
More episodes of Reasonably Optimistic
- The strange truth behind our obsession with UFOs and aliens
- My mother’s secret changed how I think about abortion
- The myths fueling America’s AI data center backlash
- Football is back. A new CTE study asks what it costs.
- A sociologist’s perspective on the Jason Arday story
- What empty pews reveal about America
Explore listener stats, chart rankings, contacts and more on the Reasonably Optimistic podcast page.