Final answer:
The Baby Boom period saw economic and cultural factors that encouraged family growth, reducing unwanted pregnancies and single motherhood. The introduction of the birth control pill later allowed women more reproductive control, which resulted in changing family patterns and potentially more single mothers and unwanted pregnancies.
Step-by-step explanation:
During the Baby Boom from 1946 to 1964, there were socioeconomic and cultural factors contributing to a decrease in unwanted pregnancies and single motherhood. The post-World War II era saw soldiers returning to a nation with confidence in long-term economic prosperity, which, combined with the GI Bill provisions and low unemployment, prompted many to start families in a climate of financial security. This economic stability allowed for bigger family planning with fewer accidental pregnancies. Furthermore, increased economic participation of women and the introduction of household technologies freed them from some traditional family responsibilities, consequently shifting their roles and perspectives.
Following WWII, an emphasis was placed on conforming to family norms, leading to a decrease in the average age of marriage and heightening motherhood's cultural importance. While the introduction of the birth control pill in 1960 granted women greater autonomy over their reproductive rights, allowing them to delay and prevent pregnancies, it arguably also contributed to a shift in attitudes towards marriage and motherhood, which may have influenced the uptick in single motherhood and unwanted pregnancies thereafter.
As a result, the baby boom saw high marriage rates and planned families, yet this was later followed by a societal change post-birth control pill introduction, with shifting marital patterns and increased individual choice over childbearing.