The United States Family Belonging Index is 46 percent, with a corresponding Family Rejection Index of 54 percent, based on 2008-2012 data from the U.S. Census Bureau’s American Community Survey.1) The action of parents determines the Family Belonging or Rejection Index within a nation, region, state, or racial or ethnic group—whether they marry and belong to each other, or whether they reject one another through divorce or other means. Rejection leaves children without married parents committed to one another and to their children.
The Index of Family Belonging is determined by the fraction of children aged 15 to 17 in a given area who live with both their biological parents, who have been married since before or around the time of their birth.
The Northeast has the highest Family Belonging Index (50 percent), followed by the Midwest (48 percent) and West (47 percent). The Family Belonging Index for the South is the lowest of the four Census regions at 42 percent.
The same aggregated data (2008 through 2010) from the Census Bureau also make it possible to derive Index of Family Belonging values for 45 of the largest U.S. cities.3
The data show the following:
City life in the United States is not favorable to family or marriage.
Index of Family Belonging for 45 Largest Cities
15- to 17-year-olds who have grown up with both married parents, 2008-2012 ACS
Rank | City | State | Percent Belonging |
---|---|---|---|
1 | San Jose | California | 56 |
2 | Seattle | Washington | 54 |
3 | San Francisco | California | 53 |
4 | Fort Worth | Texas | 48 |
5 | Mesa | Arizona | 47 |
6 | Austin | Texas | 46 |
7 | Virginia Beach | Virginia | 45 |
8 | Colorado Springs | Colorado | 44 |
9 | El Paso | Texas | 43 |
10 | Phoenix | Arizona | 43 |
11 | Fresno | California | 43 |
12 | Los Angeles | California | 43 |
13 | San Antonio | Texas | 43 |
14 | Oakland | California | 42 |
15 | Las Vegas | Nevada | 42 |
16 | Portland | Oregon | 42 |
17 | Arlington | Texas | 42 |
18 | Houston | Texas | 41 |
19 | Oklahoma City | Oklahoma | 40 |
20 | Albuquerque | New Mexico | 40 |
21 | Charlotte | North Carolina | 40 |
22 | Jacksonville | Florida | 40 |
23 | Dallas | Texas | 40 |
24 | St. Louis | Missouri | 39 |
25 | Kansas City | Missouri | 38 |
26 | New York City | New York | 36 |
27 | Louisville | Kentucky | 36 |
28 | Nashville | Tennessee | 35 |
29 | Sacramento | California | 35 |
30 | Chicago | Illinois | 35 |
31 | Long Beach | California | 35 |
32 | Atlanta | Georgia | 33 |
33 | Miami | Florida | 33 |
34 | Tuscon | Arizona | 32 |
35 | Columbus | Ohio | 32 |
36 | Indianapolis | Indiana | 29 |
37 | Denver | Colorado | 29 |
38 | Boston | Massachusetts | 28 |
39 | Philadelphia | Pennsylvania | 23 |
40 | Milwaukee | Wisconsin | 20 |
41 | Detroit | Michigan | 17 |
42 | Memphis | Tennessee | 17 |
43 | Washington | District of Columbia | 17 |
44 | Baltimore | Maryland | 16 |
45 | Cleveland | Ohio | 15 |
100 Largest Cities Ranked by Percent of All Households with Children with Married Family Heads2)
Rank | City | State | Percent of Parents Married |
---|---|---|---|
1 | Plano | Texas | 77 |
2 | Seattle | Washington | 70 |
3 | Fargo | North Dakota | 69 |
4 | San Jose | California | 69 |
5 | Chandler | Arizona | 68 |
6 | Lincoln | Nebraska | 68 |
7 | San Francisco | California | 66 |
8 | Madison | Wisconsin | 66 |
9 | San Diego | California | 65 |
10 | Salt Lake City | Utah | 64 |
11 | Henderson | Nevada | 64 |
12 | Virginia Beach | Virginia | 64 |
13 | Mesa | Arizona | 64 |
14 | Anaheim | California | 64 |
15 | Colorado Springs | Colorado | 63 |
16 | Boise | Idaho | 63 |
17 | Riverside | California | 63 |
18 | Anchorage | Alaska | 63 |
19 | Billings | Montana | 63 |
20 | Sioux Falls | South Dakota | 63 |
21 | Honolulu | Hawaii | 63 |
22 | Chula Vista | California | 62 |
23 | Portland | Oregon | 61 |
24 | Lexington | Kentucky | 61 |
25 | Austin | Texas | 61 |
26 | Santa Ana | California | 60 |
27 | Bakersfield | California | 60 |
28 | Fort Worth | Texas | 60 |
29 | Arlington | Texas | 60 |
30 | Las Vegas | Nevada | 59 |
31 | Raleigh | North Carolina | 58 |
32 | Charleston | West Virginia | 58 |
33 | Denver | Colorado | 58 |
34 | Wichita | Kansas | 58 |
35 | Omaha | Nebraska | 58 |
36 | Phoenix | Arizona | 58 |
37 | Fort Wayne | Indiana | 57 |
38 | Oklahoma City | Oklahoma | 57 |
39 | Charlotte | North Carolina | 57 |
40 | Aurora | Colorado | 57 |
41 | Los Angeles | California | 56 |
42 | Laredo | Texas | 56 |
43 | Jacksonville | Florida | 56 |
44 | Burlington | Vermont | 56 |
45 | Cheyenne | Wyoming | 56 |
46 | Albuquerque | New Mexico | 56 |
47 | Portland | Maine | 55 |
48 | El Paso | Texas | 55 |
49 | Manchester | New Hampshire | 55 |
50 | San Antonio | Texas | 55 |
51 | Saint Paul | Minnesota | 54 |
52 | Houston | Texas | 54 |
53 | Des Moines | Iowa | 54 |
54 | Fresno | California | 54 |
55 | Long Beach | California | 53 |
56 | Sacramento | California | 53 |
57 | Dallas | Texas | 53 |
58 | Stockton | California | 53 |
59 | Tulsa | Oklahoma | 52 |
60 | Louisville | Kentucky | 52 |
61 | Tuscon | Arizona | 52 |
62 | New York | New York | 52 |
63 | Corpus Christi | Texas | 51 |
64 | Nashville | Tennessee | 51 |
65 | Oakland | California | 51 |
66 | Greensboro | North Carolina | 50 |
67 | St. Petersburg | Florida | 50 |
68 | Columbus | Ohio | 49 |
69 | Kansas City | Missouri | 49 |
70 | Minneapolis | Minnesota | 49 |
71 | Chicago | Illinois | 48 |
72 | Indianapolis | Indiana | 48 |
73 | Little Rock | Arkansas | 48 |
74 | Columbia | South Carolina | 48 |
75 | Tampa | Florida | 48 |
76 | Jersey City | New Jersey | 47 |
77 | Orlando | Florida | 46 |
78 | Pittsburgh | Pennsylvania | 45 |
79 | Norfolk | Virginia | 44 |
80 | Miami | Florida | 44 |
81 | Boston | Massachusetts | 43 |
82 | Bridgeport | Connecticut | 43 |
83 | Toledo | Ohio | 42 |
84 | Atlanta | Georgia | 42 |
85 | Providence | Rhode Island | 40 |
86 | New Orleans | Louisiana | 40 |
87 | Philadelphia | Pennsylvania | 38 |
88 | Milwaukee | Wisconsin | 37 |
89 | Washington | District of Columbia | 36 |
90 | Cincinnati | Ohio | 35 |
91 | Memphis | Tennessee | 34 |
92 | St. Louis | Missouri | 34 |
93 | Jackson | Mississippi | 33 |
94 | Buffalo | New York | 32 |
95 | Newark | New Jersey | 31 |
96 | Birmingham | Alabama | 30 |
97 | Baltimore | Maryland | 30 |
98 | Cleveland | Ohio | 29 |
99 | Wilmington | Delaware | 28 |
100 | Detroit | Michigan | 27 |
U.S. | 62 |