The period following the Second World War marked an era of high marriage rates. This era between the 1950s and early 1960s was marked by improved economic conditions, high fertility, and a social climate which encouraged an earlier onset of adult transitions. Since the 1960s, marriage rates have declined while divorce rates have increased. The subsequent decline of marriage has been influenced by a number of social and economic factors. Even with the decline in marriage rates of Americans over the past two decades, weddings are still frequent occurrences, with over 2.2 million marriages occurring in 2004. Many factors can impact marriage rates, such as an increase in the number of adults who choose to cohabit rather than marry and the trend of delaying marriage to later ages. (Author abstract)