Germany's population is moving away from the classical model of 'daddy, mommy, me – a happy family'
As early as the mid-1990s, over 80% of parents were in registered marriages. Today, a significant portion of children grow up in other family constellations.
According to Destatis, in 2013, 20% of fathers and mothers were single parents (of which 1.45 million women and 166,000 men). Another 10% lived in unregistered or same-sex partnerships. In principle, marital unions still dominate among Germans. Thus, in 2013, 70% of parents, or almost 8.1 million families, had at least one child under the age of 18 (whether born in marriage, stepchildren, foster or adopted children). But in 1996, there were significantly more such families – 81%, or 9.37 million. The fewest married couples are in the eastern states – Saxony (23%), Saxony-Anhalt (26%), and Berlin (27%).
As early as 2012, 35% of Germans aged 20 to 39 considered officially registered marriage a relic of the past. Residents of Germany are also refusing lavish weddings: 71% of respondents stated that they do not intend to spend the huge amount of money that a wedding costs. According to statistics, every second adult resident of the Federal Republic is single in the full sense of the word: only about 50% organize their household with a spouse or partner, or with parents, or with children. This is the lowest figure since 1996. Moreover, the most singles are in the eastern states (58%). The total number of single parents increased by 6% compared to 1996.
For Düsseldorf psychologist Susanne Altweger, the fact that children grow up in families where parents are in an unregistered marriage is not a cause for concern. 'Most children are incredibly adaptable (flexible) from a psychological point of view,' she believes. 'It is more risky when children are placed in kindergartens and after-school groups from their first year of life. Children need a foundation in the form of a family, and whether parents are married or not is not important to them. But the consequences of lacking such a foundation can be dramatic for the child.'
Sociologist Thilo Schlinzig from the Technical University of Dresden shares the same opinion. He also believes that 'the well-being of children growing up in same-sex partnerships is not threatened.'
'Without marriage, without a partner, but with a child – this is how significantly more families live in Germany today than before, although marriage still dominates and will not completely disappear in the foreseeable future,' says Jürgen Dorbritz, a researcher at the Federal Institute for Population Research (BIB) in Wiesbaden. 'A romantic aura will persist. But the progressive individualization of society is becoming increasingly evident. One in ten young people (of both sexes) who wish to remain childless – this indicator in Germany corresponds to the international level. The institution of marriage is gradually losing its significance.'
Sergei DEBRER.
«Russkaya Germaniya»