Close X
Wednesday, December 4, 2024
ADVT 
Life

Too Much Age Gap May Be Taking A Toll On Your Marriage

IANS, 04 Aug, 2017 02:52 PM
    Men and women may tend to experience greater marital satisfaction with younger spouses, but according to a recent study, the contentment fades away over time.
     
    The findings also suggest that marriages with large age gaps are less resilient in the face of economic downturns as compared to their similarly-aged counterparts.
     
    Research from University of Colorado at Boulder, US revealed that that men reported greater marital satisfaction when paired with a younger spouse, especially in the early years of marriage.
     
    Study author Terra McKinnish said that men who are married to younger wives are the most satisfied and men who are married to older wives are the least satisfied.
     
    "Women are also particularly dissatisfied when they're married to older husbands and particularly satisfied if they're married to younger husbands," McKinnish added.
     
    That initial satisfaction erodes rapidly, however, after 6-10 years of marriage for the couples with a big age gap between the partners.
     
     
    "Over time, the people who are married to a much older or younger spouse tend to have larger declines in marital satisfaction over time compared to those who are married to spouses who are similar in age," McKinnish noted.
     
    One mechanism for this decline could be how the age difference between spouses affects the couple's ability to respond to negative economic shocks, such as a job loss, McKinnish said.
     
    "We looked at how couples respond to negative shocks and in particular, if they have a major bad economic shock or worsening of their household finances," she said.
     
    The nationally representative sample was initially comprised of 7,682 households containing 1,9,914 individuals. The participants are re-surveyed every year with questions that measure various aspects of life satisfaction.
     
    The results suggested that when couples have a large age difference, they tend to have a much larger decline in marital satisfaction when faced with an economic shock than couples that have a very small age difference.
     
    A possible explanation for this, McKinnish said, is that similarly-aged couples are more in sync on life decisions that affect both partners (having children; general spending habits) and thus, may be better equipped to adjust to a negative financial shock.
     
     
    The research appears online in the Journal of Population Economics

    MORE Life ARTICLES

    Canada Finds Case Of H7N9 Bird Flu In BC Traveller From China; First In North America

    Canada Finds Case Of H7N9 Bird Flu In BC Traveller From China; First In North America
    TORONTO — Canadian health authorities say they have diagnosed a case of H7N9 bird flu in a British Columbia woman who recently returned from China.

    Canada Finds Case Of H7N9 Bird Flu In BC Traveller From China; First In North America

    Japanese Fashion Retailer Uniqlo To Open First Two Canadian Locations In Toronto

    Japanese Fashion Retailer Uniqlo To Open First Two Canadian Locations In Toronto
    TORONTO — Japanese clothing retailer Uniqlo will open its first two Canadian stores in Toronto next year. Uniqlo is owned by Fast Retailing Co., which designs, manufactures and sells clothing under several brands around the world.

    Japanese Fashion Retailer Uniqlo To Open First Two Canadian Locations In Toronto

    Kids Get Leg Up In Life With Lessons On Mindfulness: UBC Study

    Kids Get Leg Up In Life With Lessons On Mindfulness: UBC Study
    VANCOUVER — Paying extra attention appears to have paid off for a group of Grade 4 and 5 students in Coquitlam, B.C., who participated in a mindfulness program.

    Kids Get Leg Up In Life With Lessons On Mindfulness: UBC Study

    Hostile boss? Give it right back

    Hostile boss? Give it right back
    According to a new study, employees felt less like victims when they retaliated against their bad bosses and, as a result, experienced less psychological...

    Hostile boss? Give it right back

    Lock your kids' smartphone if they ignore your call

    Lock your kids' smartphone if they ignore your call
    Parents, please note. If your kids ignore your calls, use this app to lock their smartphones immediately to get their attention back....

    Lock your kids' smartphone if they ignore your call

    'Wrong policies will make 1 bn more people poor by 2030'

    'Wrong policies will make 1 bn more people poor by 2030'
    Almost one billion more people globally may face extreme poverty by 2030 if world leaders fail to make concrete decision on inequality and climate...

    'Wrong policies will make 1 bn more people poor by 2030'