Matrimony is the source of joy for many people around the world but we have rarely ever conducted research on this merry gift of life. The following few points will provide a vivid insight into the few very astonishing and extremely interesting facts of marriage that people never really think about.
1. An average married couple only gets four minutes with each other, alone. The reason for this is their jobs, children, the television, the internet, their hobbies as well as home and family responsibilities.
With technology bringing more and more entertainment into our lives people are growing distant from each other. Children and family responsibilities were always a part of every culture after marriage but these added luxuries and increased responsibilities of work have left even less time for the couples to spend alone. As other facts in this list, this leads couples to seek and rely on marriage therapy.
2. American businesses suffer a loss of revenue of $6 billion dollars owing to the decreased worker productivity linked to the hardships in marriage. On the contrary employees who have a happy marriage increased their profits.
Marriage, once it takes place becomes a governing factor in a person’s life therefore it naturally affects their work which is almost as demanding as matrimony itself. In the long run, more and unhappy married people in the same business become harmful to the overall production of that organization.
3. A substantial part of history bears witness to marriages of convenience rather than love. Their purpose mainly is the acquisition of laws, property and the provision of increased labor forces (i.e., children).
Marriages based on love are not a very ancient concept. They came into existence as a people (both men and women) progressed and became independent in almost all fields of life.
4. An annual review showed that 55% of couples who have lived together end up getting married within 5 years of their relationship
This statistic is based on the fact that once couples have a satisfying amount of knowledge about how it would be like to live together they feel more comfortable in getting married. Live in relationships is like a mirror of married life and remove all doubts about the other person’s lifestyle and habits.
5. Women in the United States get married at an average age of 27
This is generally because women in the U.S.A are equally focused on their education and career as men, some even more than men. This drive and sense of ambition prevent them from considering a thing like marriage which may prove to be both a distraction and a hindrance in their achievement of these goals.
6. Men in the United States get married at an average age of 29
Normally this statistic is based on the general cynicism of men. They are less idealistic as compared to women and try to escape serious relationships for as long as possible. Moreover men grow mature a little later than women do. 29 to 35 are the peak ages for men getting married in any culture.
7. Marriage
This statistic shows how as time progresses couples are becoming incapable of sorting through their own issues and resort to marriage therapy. This is mainly due to the increased role of women in both the field of education and work; and the busy, over stressed lives of both husband and wife.
8. Married people have the ability to collect four times more assets and savings as compared to individuals
With two people, saving money and assets together it becomes easier to save up a lot more than individuals normally can. This can be a big motive for some non-married couples to consider marriage, as it can be financially beneficial.
9. The level of a person’s happiness before he was married determines his happiness after marriage as discovered by a 15-year long study. Marriage will not work a magic and make people happy all of a sudden.
People who have been living a contented life before marriage are more likely to have happy marriages than those who have had challenged lives. Two blissful people constitute a happy marriage.
10. Spouses have claimed that trust is more important than all other elements in forming a happy marriage; be it friendship, forgiveness, laughter or compatibility, trust trumps all.
If two people get into a marriage based on their faith in each other and manage to maintain that devotion they are more likely to be a happily married couple.
Whilst these statistics may be surprising at first glance, when you consider how society has changed over the years, you can come to terms with some of the facts. What remains the same however, is the idea that despite the various changes, marriage only works if you and your partner and truly in love.
Michael Winters is a Psychologist in Houston focusing on marriage counseling and therapy. Michael received his PhD from the University of Memphis and has been practicing since 1991.