Statistics More and more single parents

Compared to 1996, the number of children and adolescents raised by single parents increased by 37 percent

Compared to 1996, the number of children and adolescents raised by single parents increased by 37 percent. According to the Federal Statistics Office, 25 percent of adolescents between the ages of 14 and 17 lived with lone parents or so-called alternative lifestyles in 2008. In 1996, only 17 percent of young people grew up with single mothers and fathers. At that time there were still 3.9 million young people in the Federal Republic. In 2008, about 20 percent of all teenagers lived with single parents. Particularly serious is the increase in adolescents growing up with single mothers. Here, there was a rapid increase of 42 percent compared to 1996.

The result of the information provided by the Federal Statistical Office is that the traditional family model with mother and father is gradually being replaced. One in five adolescents thus grows up with single parents. Nevertheless, the percentage of adolescents living with mother and father is still at 75 percent and thus the largest share. (sb, 04.02.2010)