What Benefits Are There Of Marriage Today - 2151 Words

What benefits are there of marriage today and why do Americans continue to marry? Campbell and Wright (2010) point out, even with roughly a 50% chance of first marriages ending in divorce in the United States, marriage is still the crucial goal for most adults. The top reason given by individuals for getting married is now love (p. 331). In a life time a person will typical meet an individual, get married, have a child, and live happily ever after. In our society, these life events are now occurring in numerous orders, which is altering the traditional concept of marriage. These new trends are not necessarily wrong, but it does force counselors to respond to the changing family structure. Once marriage occurs, there are problems that†¦show more content†¦Marriage Pinsof (2002) addresses marriages as a relationship that is predicated on a mutual and voluntary commitment to a life-long, monogamous partnership. â€Å"Monogamy† refers to sexual exclusivity and means that the partners in a marriage pledge sexual fidelity as part of their commitment (p. 137). Although there is not one way to have a healthy satisfying marriage, there are some common factors that are worth highlighting as the following characteristics: investment in the well-being of the beloved, respect, admiration, sexual desire, intimacy, commitment, exclusivity, and understanding (Manning, 2007). Traditional Marriage According to Russell, Baker, and Mcnulty (2013), marital relationships can be the source of life’s most enjoyable experiences, they are also the source of one of life’s most painful experiences – infidelity. The difference between dating and marital relationships is that married individuals demonstrate higher levels of commitment (p. 244). In the past, people didn’t really marry for love. Prior to the 20th century, the most common endpoint of marriage became divorce (Pinsof, 2002). Marriage Today Since women beginning working out side out the home, and beginning to have the option to use contraception, the dynamics of marriage shifted. Baker and Emery (1993) study concluded that first, those who are about to be married have largely incorrect perceptions of the legal terms of the marriage contract as