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| Photo used with permission from ElvertBarnes. |
The top three predictors of a happy marriage among men and women are ... wait - take a second, close your eyes, and guess. What do you think they'll be?
No, seriously, guess ...
Okay, got your guesses? Here's the official findings. If you're a parent and you want a happy marriage, then focus on these three things:
1. Sexual intimacy
2. Commitment
3. Generosity
If you're not sexually satisfied, then you're likely to have a 6-7% overall happiness rate with your marriage. Ouch. But commitment and generosity are right behind: if you're not sure of your relationship (commitment), I'd be unhappy too.
The generosity thing is surprising at first, but not if you remember that the division of household labor is vital to a woman's happiness in marriage. In her book For Better, Tara Parker-Pope says research shows that 10 percent of men feel the division of labor in their home is unfair. By comparison, a whopping 50 percent of women complain of carrying an unfair housework burden.
We've covered this before, but it's worth repeating: when both spouses are satisfied with the division of labor (in other words, when you're generous with giving your time to the household), the couple has sex one more time a month. Which means taking care of #3 can improve #1.
Get busy, folks!
Period of adjustment. Couples still living separate lives have their own living habits. When now they are living under one roof, they need to learn how to adjust to one another without creating problems.
ReplyDeleteofficiants and premarital counseling