Let’s get straight to it…here are four reasons why you shouldn’t marry.
1. You’ve met your soul mate: The “soul mate” model of marriage, for love rather than practical reasons, is seen as harmful by some researchers. They say only high income earners can really afford the luxury of marrying for love. The rest need look for things like whether the person is a good earner in order for it to survive.
2. You want to have kids: Marriage is no longer seen as necessary for having children. The percentage of children born to unmarried mothers have risen from 13% to 44%. And in the western world, there are now more unmarried mums than married.
3. You’re marrying for looks, money or social status: While these are still prime motivators for first dates, what matters most in the long-term is agreeability. How nice you think each other are and how easy it is to be together.
4. Because marriage is better for you all around: A mammoth study found couples who just lived together long-term reaped all the mental, physical and social benefits that marriage provides.
by Susan Floyd
