Özet:

In today's rapidly changing and transforming societies, the family is at the center of all changes and is deeply affected. With the process of social change, the definition, structure, types and functions of the family are undergoing changes; there is a transition from the traditional extended family structure to the nuclear family structure; new life styles alternative to marriage, new family types and social problems related to the family are diversifying and becoming more visible. In particular, the reshaping of women's position in society with the increase in their level of education and their active participation in working life brings about radical changes and transformations in the family structure. The increase in women's education level, their active participation in working life and the change in traditional roles cause women to postpone their family and marriage-related processes and decisions to older/later ages, increase their fertility age and, as a natural consequence of all these, decrease their fertility rates. In other words, the changing position of women in society and family structure affects their tendency to make marriage and childbearing decisions at an older/later age as a natural consequence of their higher participation in education and employment processes. From this point of view, this study aims to examine the changing tendencies of women from being "young mothers" by getting married at an early age in traditional societies to being "late mothers" as a result of postponing marriage and postponing the age of childbearing due to their increased participation in education and employment processes with the transition to modern societal structures by making use of current data from surveys conducted by various institutions and organizations, especially the Turkish Statistical Institute. Based on the concepts of family and marriage, the study focuses on women's position in society, active participation in working life, marriage and motherhood processes in the context of social change.