[throwawaysea]

It's probably many things, but I think another factor is a delayed transition to (biological) adulthood, which leaves fewer "prime years" for the tiring task of raising children. That delayed transition comes in part from an increased focus on the self. Although individualism is often attacked or derided in modern American culture (from the political left at least), I feel like there is a near-universal individualism across our society that never existed in the past - people are delaying/skipping having children and putting their own exploration and experience first. It's a luxury in that we didn't have this option previously as a species, but now we can entertain "finding ourselves" or traveling as a lifestyle and so on. For many, delaying parenthood or skipping it outright is a simple matter of not disturbing that freedom of choice that they've come to enjoy. For others, that freedom itself becomes tiring and the search for purpose brings them back to children. But the side effect in aggregate, is a more sexless society and lower overall birthrate. Just a thought...

[Robotbeat]

That, and the hyper-individualism of capitalism makes it super hard to AFFORD that collectivist goal of perpetuating the species. Housing is much more expensive, as is healthcare, which are two things you need when starting out as a young family. Lack of collective bargaining power compared to the 50s means starting wages are also much lower and jobs are less stable, so it’s harder to take that leap to add another person to the household (which requires probably another room plus thousands or tens of thousands of dollars in medical expenses which as a young person could be the same as an entire year’s income).

So I think the challenge is a kind of selfish individualism from both the left and the right, although of different types. And let’s not even count the cost of schooling (which the right wants to burden the parents for).

[WarOnPrivacy]

> That delayed transition comes in part from an increased focus on the self.

Mostly no. It comes because modern hiring practices are trending toward making first time job applicants unemployable - and because under-25 incomes are less likely to come anywhere near covering minimal living expenses.