Now, after reading that information, here are my summary thoughts: Essentially, the cultural norm of marriage following an unplanned pregnancy (“shotgun marriages”) faded with the increased access to abortions and availability of contraception. As a result, women in general, but also the women without ready access to abortions and contraception, were less willing to withhold sex in non-marital relationships. But because access to abortions and contraception was not uniformly available, those women without that access then saw a rise in non-marital birth rates. BUT, this does not explain the significant increase in non-marital birth rates between 1960 and 1970 nor does it explain the continued increase in non-marital birth rates for several decades after 1970, during which time access to abortions and to contraception was likely much more uniformly available.
Now, after reading that information, here are my summary thoughts: Essentially, the cultural norm of marriage following an unplanned pregnancy (“shotgun marriages”) faded with the increased access to abortions and availability of contraception. As a result, women in general, but also the women without ready access to abortions and contraception, were less willing to withhold sex in non-marital relationships. But because access to abortions and contraception was not uniformly available, those women without that access then saw a rise in non-marital birth rates. BUT, this does not explain the significant increase in non-marital birth rates between 1960 and 1970 nor does it explain the continued increase in non-marital birth rates for several decades after 1970, during which time access to abortions and to contraception was likely much more uniformly available.