The benefits are that families will be more evenly balanced in terms of income and social advantages and that welfare services will become more comprehensive. For the individuals, the main social effects of the pill are concentrated around the years just before and just after marriage. The pill has produced radical changes in the behaviour patterns of young people, says Prof. James, and as a consequence the family can hardly fail to improve as an institution. Canadian statistics in this area are remarkably slim. But recent U.S. studies in neighboring cities show that as many as 50 percent of all first marriages involve seven-month babies.
Canadian figures are probably much the same.
What is certain is that unwanted pregnancy is the motive behind a very high percentage of teenage marriages. One sociologist who conducted a study in western Canada estimates that 50 percent of girls in an average suburban high school have probably had intercourse and that 10 percent of all Canadian girls in high school drop out because they become pregnant. Quite obviously, a lot of people who have seven-month babies especially teenagers, would not have married that particular partner, says Prof. James. There is a good possibility, therefore, that the pill will produce better, more stable marriages and, eventually, a lower divorce rate. At the same time there will be fewer school dropouts.