In fact, a recent study suggests that people who get married even though they have doubts and uncertainty may divorce at a higher rate. It also suggests that a woman’s intuition is a better indicator than a man’s.
The study was conducted by researchers are the University of California, Los Angeles and took place over the course of four years. There were 464 newlywed couples who participated in the study and were questioned about their feelings of doubt prior to the wedding.
The results indicated that 47 percent of the men had doubts, while 38 percent of women had feelings of uncertainty. Of those men who had doubts before the wedding, 14 percent of them were divorced just four years later. Nearly 20 percent of the women who reported having doubts were divorced by the end of the study.
While the study was relatively small and didn’t allow for a lot of explanation and detail, it is an interesting concept. People are told all the time to ignore the hesitations and feelings of uncertainty before a wedding because they say it’s nothing to worry about. Years later, though, when they are dealing with a divorce, they may say that they had a feeling it wouldn’t work, and that there were signs that they should have paid more attention to.
Unfortunately, there is no hard and fast rule or equation that determines how long a marriage will last. Everyone wants a marriage to work and last a lifetime, and that may make it easier to ignore feelings of uncertainty and doubt before a wedding.
Source: USA Today, “Pre-marriage doubts signal unhappy unions, divorce,” Sharon Jayson, Sept. 14, 2012
- Our firm works with people facing a variety of family law issues. From premarital agreements to divorces and child support arrangements, these matters can be emotional and difficult. Those who have questions about the topics discussed in this post are invited to visit our California family law page for more information.
