Future of Marriage the Effectiveness

¶ … Future of Marriage

The Effectiveness and Future of Marriage

Are married people happier than unmarried people?

Married people may indeed be happier than unmarried couples, researchers from Michigan State University have concluded (Nauert 2012). Marriage however does not seem to steam up happiness, rather it has been demonstrated that it keeps it stable for partners who have engaged in marriage, as opposed to unmarried people finding themselves less and less happy in time. It is worth noting that the statement above is generally valid, as research indicate, however happiness is very much a subject dependent on personalities. As such, a married couple may find itself taking the road to unhappiness due to family related circumstances, whereas one unmarried individual may be satisfied as such. Indeed, either married or unmarried, individuals may find themselves increasingly happy or not because of a series of other causes, not necessarily marriage. Studies show that, on average, the percentage is only slightly different when it comes to happiness of married people over unmarried people. DePaulo stated that on a 1 to 4 scale, with 4 indicating the greatest happiness, people currently married were happy 3.3% and people always single were 3.2 happy (2013). While marriage may inoculate people with the idea that a partner will make life worth living, thus bringing happiness into their lives, that is not always the case. The increase of divorce may otherwise suggest unhappiness for partners. However, marriage seems to work in a more responsible way for partners, as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention were able to indicate (Conger 2009). There is no real evidence to point that marriage itself is what makes people happier and that unmarried people are less happy. If anything, what the studies seem to demonstrate is that the possibility is there but, at the same time, unmarried people may be just as happy as married ones and vice versa.

Q: Does getting married have the same impact on all ethnic and socioeconomic groups? Why or why not?

A: Marriage is not a social contract signed between two human beings. It is a relationship deeply rooted in human nature and therefore, it is governed by natural law. However, getting married may signify different things to different people because of the upbringings and culture. These, in turn, may have a different impact on marriages, leading one to tighten its bonds while subjecting another to dissolution. Studies show that there are cases when people oppose to marriages between partners of different ethnicities. Likewise, there are people who believe religion is an important decision for two people getting married and, as such, two partners should share their religion. However, most people agree with marriages of different ethnicities or religions. Chances are such marriages, especially those between partners of different culture, may be subjected to more tension than usual marriages because individuals would deal with the expectations of the people around them and, not least, the differences of their upbringing, thus their conceptions and beliefs over life. Also, there seems to be an economic difference between people who decide to marry young and those who get married later on. As indicated by Dylan Matthews, "men who wait until they're 30 or older to marry earn a statistically smaller amount than men who marry earlier." (2013) That would indicate that men feel a compulsion to earn more money because they get married. However, that might also indicate the need for a husband to support his family, thus leading to the conclusion that women, once married, may depend more on their husbands' income than men do on their wive's.

Q: Over the next several decades, what changes do you expect to see to the institution of marriage, based on current trends and the history of marriage?

A: There is no doubt, concept of marriage has constantly changed over the years. For example, in past centuries, not getting married was a stigma for a woman. Those were the times when women's social role was limited to marriage and motherhood. Moreover, women were subordinated to their husbands whereas today and even more in upcoming years, we expect there will be a share of equality between partners in marriage. We will more often meet cases of men who stay home to raise their children and, in this respect, we have come a long way. Not only are women more free to marry men whenever they want, but same -- sex marriage is also advocated in many parts of the world in the twenty first century. The same goes for same -- sex marriages of men. In regards to these, Ralph Wedgwood has pointed that "while the argument in favor is compelling, its opponents have a point." (2012) by that, he meant that, whereas those who favour such marriages often point to legal rights, the ones on the other side seem to have a stronger argument to favour their position: that marriage is inextricably traditional and "imbued with social meaning." However, it is our opinion, that marriage faces two extreme fates: it is either going to be defended as fundamentally traditional to such an extend that we will have no other choise but to return to its initial context or, secondly, it will lose its traditional value and social meaning. It is possible that same -- sex marriages will eventually be accepted by society and allowed everywhere, while it may also lose its religious affiliation, meaning getting married in front of God may lose its value. As we can observe, changes may work for the benefit of family life in regards to women sharing the same equality in marriage with men. However, we might also have to face the possibility that, if same -- sex marriages are to be eventually accepted, such couples would therefore have to resort to other ways of having children. In this respect, we think the natural process of having babies would suffer.

Q: Are we moving toward a future in which marriage will be less important for most people?