Assuming the premise that people should have children (a debatable topic), research shows that children born into wedlock with their biological, adult parents have the best chance to live what most people consider a good life.
Children born out of wedlock are more likely to have teen parents
Not all teenage parents are bad, but on average, they will be worse than adult parents.
Giving birth to children as a teen is a significant contributor to dropping out in high school: "Only about 50% of teen mother receive a high school diploma by 22 years of age, whereas approximately 90% of women who do not give birth during adolescence graduate from high school" About Teen Pregnancy | CDC . By the age 30, these mothers have only a 1.5 chance of earning a college degree Teen Pregnancy Statistics - Teen Help . From this, children are going to be worse off because their mothers are more likely to be less educated, thus having increased difficulty in understanding adult documents and finding a well-paying job. This undereducation is also likely to extend to the child, wherein "the children of teenage mothers are more likely to have lower school achievement and to drop out of high school".
Health problems can extend from a number of reasons, ranging from an inability to eat well due to poverty, to receiving poor health advice from relatively uneducated parents. Moreover, "the children of teenage mothers are more likely to have more health problems" About Teen Pregnancy | CDC .
Economically, due to welfare and support systems, 80% of unmarried teen mothers are on welfare Teen Pregnancy Statistics - Teen Help . We can see the very costly effect of this teenage welfare usage: "between 1991 and 2015, the teen birth rate dropped 64%, which results in $4.4 billion in public savings in 2015 alone" About Teen Pregnancy | CDC . In 2010 specifically, $9.4 billion tax dollars (federal budget) were spent on teen pregnancy and childbirth Teen Pregnancy Statistics - Teen Help . Teens not having children helps save the economy money.
Children from teenage parents are also more likely to spend time in jail Teen Pregnancy Statistics - Teen Help .
In promoting children to be born into wedlock, we are inadvertently lowering the chance of the parents being teenaged and all the negative outcomes associated with that.
Children born out of wedlock are less likely to live with both biological parents growing up
Absence of a father in a child's life leads to a miserable host of negative outcomes. Inversely, the presence of a biological father prevents these negative outcomes Statistics | The Fatherless Generation (wordpress.com) :
- 63% of youth suicides are from fatherless homes – 5 times the average
- 90% of all homeless and runaway children are from fatherless homes – 32 times the average
- 80% of rapists with anger problems come from fatherless homes –14 times the average
- 71% of all high school dropouts come from fatherless homes – 9 times the average
- Children with fathers who are involved are 40% less likely to repeat a grade in school
- Children with fathers who are involved are 70% less likely to drop out of school
- Children with fathers who are involved are more likely to get A’s in school and enjoy school by engaging in extracurricular activities
- 75% of all adolescent patients in chemical abuse centers come from fatherless homes – 10 times the average
- Children living in two-parent household with a poor relationship with their father are 68% more likely to smoke, drink, or use drugs compared to all teens in two-parent households
- Teens in single mother households are at a 30% higher risk than those in two-parent households
- 70% of youths in state-operated institutions come from fatherless homes – 9 times the average
- 85% of all youths in prison come from fatherless homes – 20 times the average
The list goes on. Check the source if you're interested. It's super clear that having a biological father in a child's life is a positive thing.
On another note, the Cinderella Effect is a phenomenon wherein non-biological parents are far more likely to treat non-biological children poorly. Studies have repeatedly shown that non-biological children are at 100-300 times the risk of being beaten to death by their non-biological parents (particularly the father). You can add to this the elevated rates which in stepfathers don't play with their stepchildren, contribute to accidental injury of their stepchildren and less investment in stepchild's education cinderella effect facts.doc (ucsb.edu) .
There's no doubt that being raised with both biological parents is preferable for a child.
Unmarried parents are more likely to: be poor, suffer from depression, report substance abuse and spend time in jail
I'm not sure how anyone would argue against factors being good Non-marital childbearing has increased dramatically since the 1970s (princeton.edu) . Nonetheless, I will make some short arguments.
Being poor, parent or child, means that on average you (compared to non-poor people): had two fewer years of schooling, had incomes less than half, received $826 more annually in food stamps, almost 3 times likely to report poor health and twice as likely to be arrested (if male) 2.4 The Consequences of Poverty – Social Problems (umn.edu) .
Depression not only feels draining to be under, but also "raises levels of the stress hormone cortisol and can significantly weaken the immune system" Coping With Depression: A Guide to Good Treatment | Everyday Health .
Drug abuse routinely leads to problems with memory attention and decision-making. It also increases your body temperature, which can lead to problems with sleeping and other health complications The Physical & Mental Effects of Drug Abuse | Gateway Foundation .
Spending time in jail is extremely self-evident as being bad.
Closing thoughts
It's time society stops seeing alternative parenting set-ups, such as non-married parents, single mothers, double mothers/fathers, step-dads and teen parents, as credible alternatives to the traditional set-up. Instead, we should view them as objectively inferior.