Should Couples Live Together Before Marriage?
SodaHead Living
2011/11/17 18:00:00
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You probably have tons of friends who are living together before marriage. Heck, you may have even "shacked up" yourself. But you've probably also heard that a "trial run" isn't such a good idea.
Two-thirds of recently married Americans lived together before they married, according to bigthink.com. But last year, a National Center for Health Statistics study found that couples who live together before they get hitched are less likely to stay married, according to The New York Times. The likelihood that a marriage would last for a decade or more decreased by six percentage points if the couple had lived together first.
That said, people are cohabiting anyway. "From the perspective of many young adults, marrying without living together first seems quite foolish," Prof. Pamela J. Smock, a research professor at the Population Studies Center at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, told the Times. "Just because some academic studies have shown that living together may increase the chance of divorce somewhat, young adults themselves don’t believe that."
Thinking about shacking up? If you and your partner are college graduates, the chances that you'll tie the knot -- and stay married at least 10 years -- improve, the study found. If you're 26 or older, or have a baby eight months or more after marrying, you're also more likely to stay hitched for more than a decade. And getting engaged BEFORE moving in is also a good idea, according to the study.
Do you think moving in together before marriage is smart? Or stupid?
Two-thirds of recently married Americans lived together before they married, according to bigthink.com. But last year, a National Center for Health Statistics study found that couples who live together before they get hitched are less likely to stay married, according to The New York Times. The likelihood that a marriage would last for a decade or more decreased by six percentage points if the couple had lived together first.
That said, people are cohabiting anyway. "From the perspective of many young adults, marrying without living together first seems quite foolish," Prof. Pamela J. Smock, a research professor at the Population Studies Center at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, told the Times. "Just because some academic studies have shown that living together may increase the chance of divorce somewhat, young adults themselves don’t believe that."
Thinking about shacking up? If you and your partner are college graduates, the chances that you'll tie the knot -- and stay married at least 10 years -- improve, the study found. If you're 26 or older, or have a baby eight months or more after marrying, you're also more likely to stay hitched for more than a decade. And getting engaged BEFORE moving in is also a good idea, according to the study.
Do you think moving in together before marriage is smart? Or stupid?
Top Opinion
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Myself94 2011/11/17 18:15:21
I know a lot of people think that it doesn't matter if you get married or not, but I think that living with a woman for a long period of time and choosing to not marry her is not only disrespectful to your relationship, but also makes your girlfriend look like a whore. If you want to spend the rest of your lives together, why not marry her? What does it really hurt? So spend some time living together and growing accustomed to each other if you must, but don't get too comfortable and forget what this should be -- a transitional stage.
go texas go!