Most Americans who don't want children know that they don't want children
as early as their teen years or even in their early twenties.
And guess what,
a new study indicates that they don't end up changing their minds later in life.
So Michigan State University did this study, and
the researchers who published it in Scientific Reports identified
childfree adults by using data from a representative sample of
1,500 adults who completed MSU's State of the State Survey.
They found that 21.6% of those surveyed or
about 1.7 million people did not want children, making them childfree.
Now, the study's findings would translate by the way to 50 to 60
million Americans being childfree, which isn't surprising,
especially when you look at how birth rates have declined in the country.
It might have a lot to do with the fact that we live in a country that's
not very supportive of individuals who want to establish a family.
Having children medically is expensive, caring for children is expensive.
Child care is incredibly expensive, and as we all know,
sending them to college is also astronomically expensive.
And so according to Jennifer Watling Neal, who is one of the co-authors for
the study, people, especially women who say they don't want children
are often told they'll change their mind, but the study found otherwise.
People are making the decision to be childfree early in life,
most often in their teens and twenties.
And it's not just young people claiming they don't want children.
Women who decided in their teens to be childfree are now,
on average, nearly 40 and still do not have children.
And so I think that this is comforting for me personally.
>> Validating.
>> Validating, yes, because I've gotten that line a lot, Emma.
When I say, no, I don't think having children is for me,
it's you'll change your mind.
Everyone does, and it turns out, no, everyone doesn't.
>> I'm wondering if I even said something like that to you in a personal
conversation.
>> I don't think so, I would have remembered.
I don't think so.
>> Well, I mean, that makes total sense, right?
I want to have kids, I don't have kids now.
But I will say that, honestly, going through this heat wave right now and
seeing the massive effects of climate change in Europe is
also going through an unprecedented heat wave as well.
It's the first time where I'm getting legit anxiety, do I wanna rethink this?
Do I want to bring children into a world where I don't even know if
the planet can be livable?
And I still think for me, the answer is yes.
But I also think that it makes total sense for that reason but
for other reasons that people wouldn't want to procreate in this environment.
And I think the reason people are like, you'll change your mind is just that is
how women have historically been perceived in terms of their value.
Is what value can you bring to the childbearing thing?
How can you produce new life?
And that's particularly, I would say in society as patriarchal
as United States, oftentimes how women have been able to,
I guess show their individuality because there haven't been other avenues.
And so it's hard for people to conceive of that not being an option for
women, particularly in cities.
I think here in New York, there are a lot of women that are in LA and imagine to.
And there are a lot of women that are like, no, that's not for me.
>> Yeah, well, look, this is the way that I think about it.
I mean, this study, if you really stop to consider the mindset of individuals
who don't wanna have children, this study isn't that surprising, right?
Because in order to declare that you wanna be childfree,
you have to have questioned what the societal norms are.
You have to really think outside of what
everyone in society tells you you should do.
And you have to really consider whether or not having children is something that
you would enjoy doing, would be good at doing, feel comfortable doing, right?
You have to go against the grain because having children is still very
much the norm.
And I think a lot of people just kind of move about.
They like to move about the cabin, they go about the motions, right?
They think this is what I'm supposed to do.
I'm supposed to get married, I'm supposed to have kids,
they don't really question it.
But for those who just loudly declare I don't wanna have kids,
they've questioned it and they've considered the factors.
And when you really ask yourself those deep questions and
you get to know yourself and who you really are,
the likelihood of you changing your mind on that is pretty rare, right?
Cuz all of the issues involving having kids,
that persuaded me against having kids aren't a race, they still exist.
And so why would I randomly out of nowhere just change my mind on that?
>> Yeah, I think it's also oddly reminiscent of,
I think when people talk about kids who are transitioning,
because to transition into your new gender is
such a difficult thing to do in this society.
Every gender norm, every person is telling you, you're unwell,
you're mentally off, right?
Your parents are abusing you, and Jordan Peterson's saying that the doctor,
that they're providing you with carers, there was the butcher.
But think again, Sunshine.
>> [LAUGH] My God, you said, Jordan Peterson,
I immediately thought of that, I'm so happy you saw.
Have you noticed that he's been saying weird stuff like that a lot lately?
>> Yeah, he wants his own catchphrase.
I'm pretty sure he said, Ben Shapiro has a facts over feelings,
so he's like, what can I come up with in my little bond, villain, cat cave?
>> Think again, Sunshine.
>> You gotta come up with a better catchphrase than that, it's just so bad.
>> It's really bad, and he does not have a shred of social awareness.
I've never seen anybody take themselves more seriously, and
we see a lot of people take themselves very seriously.
>> But to be fair, he does wear a pinstripe suit, so
he's a very serious person.
>> Yes, we do live in 1920's prohibition,
[LAUGH] so that's a normal choice.
Yeah, really, I just think when you put it that way,
that's really what it reminded me of.
When people discount that decision, it's like, but
if your f at this place, you probably aren't gonna regret it,
because it takes so much for you to get to this place.
>> Totally.