Married couples with children are more likely to be satisfied with their relationships and family life than their unmarried peers, according to a new international survey.
The Global Family and Gender Survey looked at family trends in 11 countries including Ireland. It found while 18% of married couples have had ‘serious doubts’ in the past year that their relationship would last, compared to 34% of cohabiting couples, who were also less likely than married couples to be “very satisfied” with their family life. “This survey gives us some insight into why cohabiting relationships are less stable on average than marriage,” Patricia Casey said on behalf of the Iona Institute, adding that being married “seems to add an extra layer of commitment and stability to a relationship” and that society has an interest in supporting this.
“For this reason, we should seriously consider actively promoting marriage between parents and would-be parents as a path to this,” she said.