One of a series of reports which use Census Bureau data to provide perspective on important demographic and socioeconomic trends and patterns, this analysis describes changes that have affected women's roles in the last 30 years. Topics discussed are: marriage, divorce, widowhood, childbearing, household and family living arrangements, education, labor force participation, earnings, and per capita income and poverty. Conclusions include the following. Fertility is lower, and labor force participation is higher. Women are marrying later now than they did 30 years ago, and thus have more time to attend school or gain work experience prior to marriage. Women are getting divorced more often, but they are also remarrying at a high rate. Since 1950, relatively more women are completing college and higher degrees, but they are still majoring in traditionally female fields. The average earnings of women in relation to men have not risen over the past 30 years. Appendices contain tables showing marital status by age and sex and changes in the distribution of women across family statuses. (RM)