Discuss the affect of premarital cohabitation on marriage success

Question

What will be an ideal response?

Answer 1

Many couples view cohabitation as a trial marriage of sorts. Does this mean that couples who live together before marriage are less likely to divorce? The answer is a clear and resounding "no!" Despite the fact that premarital cohabitation allows the couple to rehearse marital roles, these couples divorce more frequently than those who do not live together before marriage. In fact, in the United States, over 50 percent of cohabiting relationships dissolve within 5 years. Researchers have repeated similar findings in other developed countries such as Australia, Britain, Canada, Germany, and Sweden.
Researchers attribute the high risk of divorce among couples who cohabit before marriage to the following factors:
- Cohabitation requires a lesser commitment. While 90 percent of cohabiters plan to marry, only 35 to 50 percent actually do. Additionally, cohabiting men are less marriage-minded that cohabiting women are.
- Cohabiters are typically less religious. Couples who share religious beliefs may find reinforcement for working through difficult times, through their religious practices or through support from others.
- Those who live together before marriage experience significantly higher rates of relationship violence than those who do not cohabit premaritally.
- Cohabiters have higher levels of marital expectations. Since living together prior to marriage is thought to be a trial marriage and a time to work out differences, cohabiters have higher expectations of relationship quality when they actually marry.