Does Living Together Before Marriage Increase the Chance of Divorce
A study in the Journal of Family Psychology found that couples who live together before marriage have a higher chance of getting divorced than those who wait until they were engaged or married. It also stated that couples who lived together before marrying reported lower marriage satisfaction, despite the fact that over 70 percent of couples in the United States live together before marrying.
Meanwhile, a study in the Journal of Family Issues, analyzed the reasons why couples chose to live together. The most common answer was because they wanted to spend more time together, followed by convenience, followed by testing the relationship. What do you think? Does living together before marriage increase or decrease the chances that a couple will later divorce?
Source: "Living Together Before Marriage Ups Chance of Divorce: Study" published at AFP; "DU study: Living together before marriage causes problems" by Jeffrey Wolf, published at 9News.com; and "Live-In Lovers Have 'Unhealthy' Marriage" published at The Times of India.
It seems that instead of analyzing why people live together before marriage, that analyzing why people don't live together might be more telling. Couples who do not live together for religious or moral purposes prior to marriage, might have a religious or moral objection to divorce. If this is a value they hold together as a couple, then they simply stay together instead of getting divorced and the divorce rate for those couples is lower.
The divorce rate between those who weekly attend church are the same as those who do not, so I don't agree with the 'staying together because of religious reasons'. My husband and I did not live together before marriage and we are reaping the benefits of what a joy marriage can be.
Going to church does not equal religion. I believe it's an individual choice and a matter of the two parties being truly commited. I am never able to find out WHY cohabitating increases the risk of divorce, statistically speaking.
I heard on the radio that the reason why people get divorced if the cohabitate before marriage is because men/women feel pressured to get married. They feel like ok well we are already living together we might as well be married. but in reality they arnt compatible. I dont really think it matters if you live together before or after I think it just relates to how well you both connect and the mental and physical attraction that you have for one another.If you ever feel like you are losing touch you need to find a way to make it work even through the bad times. a relationship can always work out as long as your willing to make it work. Once one gives up, its over.