Researchers from Michigan State University studied adults who choose not to have children. They asked over 20,000 people across all 50 states in 2024. The study found big differences between states.
In California and Michigan, one in five adults chooses not to have children. In Louisiana and the Dakotas, only one in ten adults makes this choice. States with higher living costs and strong reproductive rights have more childfree adults.
However, individual factors like age and marriage matter much more than local laws or living costs. Because of this, new laws or lower costs will not change people's decisions easily. Researchers want to do more studies to understand these choices better.
Difficult words
- researcher — a person who studies something to learn new informationResearchers
- factor — something that helps cause or influence a situationfactors
- decision — a choice that you make after thinking carefullydecisions
- choice — an act of picking or deciding between different optionschoices
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Discussion questions
- What factors do you think are important when deciding to start a family?
- How do living costs affect where people choose to live in your country?
