Marriage vs Cohabitation

698 Words3 Pages
Marriage and Cohabitation Marriage, the formal union of a man and woman does not always come out as the top choice. Cohabitation seems to be the choice of the masses nowadays. There are many different aspects when we consider marriage versus cohabitation. It would make perfect sense that people are weighing these options carefully, especially with the “rate of marriage at a record low”. (Benjamin-Guzzo, Karen. To Love or Live. Social Science Research 35.2. 2012: 339-48. Web.) The three aspects that seem to be the most important in interpersonal relationships, which I will be discussing, are psychological well-being, physical health and social life New family structures have been more common in the twenty-first century as marriage rates decline. In 2010 Time Magazine and the PEW Research Center conducted a poll analyzing Americans attitudes toward marriage. The results astonished this writer. “Approximately forty percent of surveyed agreed that the institution of marriage is becoming obsolete”. (Mccaffery, Paul. Family Structure. N.p.: Reference Shelf. 2012. 1-7 Web.) In a survey of 2,737 Americans, “cohabiters reported higher levels of happiness and self-esteem than married couples”. (Denisco, Allison. “In the Game of Love Which Argument Wins”. Psychology Today. 1 May 2012. 1. Print) Feeling better about yourself and overall happiness would definitely attribute to the higher levels of psychological well-being. From my research, it is my opinion that married people fair better in the area of physical health. Especially married men. Although it is a notable gain right after tying the knot, it seems short lived and fades after the first few years of marriage. I would attribute this to a few factors such as less financial stress and the availability of joint health insurance. The most interesting thing that learned is in the area of social life. It is noted
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