Baxter 1

Jacob Baxter

Mrs. Cramer

Comp Pd. 8

28 Sept. 2018

Does Cohabitation affect a couple's marriage?

Why do you think cohabitation affects marriage? The definition of cohabitation is the

state of living together and having a sexual relationship without being married. Cohabitation has

always been a big deal for marriage. Those who believe cohabitation has had a bad effect on

marriage were most likely in a relationship that didn’t work for them. Also, for those who think

it might have a good effect on marriage, they possibly have a good relationship. When

cohabitation helps, it can improve someone's life in a big way, but if it doesn't, it could ruin

someone's life in a heartbeat. Cohabitation and marriage will always be in couples' relationships,

and it doesn't necessarily affect marriage all the time. In this essay, it will inform you on what

cohabitation really is, and what it can do. It also says that Cohabitation could help or destroy

marriage; Three possible outcomes are an alternative to marriage, potential increased chance of

divorce, or it could benefit both sides.

To begin with, cohabitation can act as an alternative marriage for some couples that

believe marriage isn't worth it, and cohabitation can serve as a substitute for them. Cohabitation

is only a “trial marriage”, it tests the relationship of the couples (Hughes). This source states that

cohabitation should be used to test a relationship before marriage because it can make sure the

couple can be compatible with each other. As it being a “trial marriage” it could be very helpful

to a couple, showing them if they are compatible or they should see someone else. This source

also shows how the couple could choose this way as an alternative marriage. Sometimes after
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divorce, those couples instead go to cohabitation (Mckay). In this source, it also states that

couples who don’t enjoy their marriage, instead divorce and move to cohabitation. It could also

be a way for the couple to stay in touch, in case they don’t believe it was a good idea to divorce.

Choosing cohabitation as a “virtual” marriage (Martin). This source is saying that marriage can

be viewed as a different kind of marriage, one that can show how good the couple can be without

having to go into marriage. The “virtual” marriage can also give a couple a better life then what

they have, instead of having to go into marriage. So, cohabitation could be an alternative

marriage that could be the best way to use it.

Now, cohabitation could also potentially increase the chance of divorce if the couple is

married. A study shows that there is a 33% higher rate of divorce in couples that were in

cohabitation, than in couples who didn’t move in with each other until marriage (Fox). This

source states that a study was taken, and cohabitation increases divorce 33% more than with

other couples. This also shows that cohabitation is becoming a bigger factor in divorce rates. A

study showing 2003 women and 1483 men, age 15 to 44, 60% of them were cohabitation, 20%

were divorced (Hughes). This shows that cohabitation can cause divorce, but some of that 20%

could just be regular couples. Also, it specifically states that the couples were age 15 to 44,

which shows even teens were getting married and divorced, possibly due to children.

Cohabitation could also not affect marriage, its mostly affected by the wellbeing of the couple

(Zimmermann and Easterlin). This source shows that marriage could really be affected more by

the wellbeing of the couple, then by cohabitation, which is told to be the increase in most

divorces. Also, the wellbeing of the couple could be as simple as yelling or getting into

arguments. This can happen due to cohabitation. So, cohabitation can cause divorce, but it isn't

what always causes divorce.

Finally, cohabitation could benefit both sides of the relationship whether it be the man or

woman of the couple. Cohabitation is viewed as a way to obtain advantages in a relationship

without marriage (Martin). For example, getting married takes a lot of money from you, also

more possible income could be achieved due to no marriage. This also shows that advantages

from cohabitation could help someone's relationship without having to marry someone. Most

people who benefit from cohabitation, are more likely to divorce (Hughes). This source is telling

you that divorce is more common, and the benefits of divorcing like no pressure and possibly

more income is greater for the couple. It also tells you benefiting from cohabitation could put

someone's relationship at a higher risk for divorcing and making it so one of you might possibly

benefit more from the divorce. More benefits given to single women with children (Williams).

This source shows that women with children can get more benefits from cohabitation. Also, it

can benefit the man of the relationship with a family he can support and love without having to

marry her. So, couples could benefit from cohabitation, but at a price they might not be willing to

afford like getting divorced or never seeing each other again.

Cohabitation could possibly be a way to help marriage or destroy it, three ways this is

possible is it being an alternative to marriage, potential increase in divorce, and could benefit

both sides. Cohabitation being an alternative marriage is possible for some couples who choose it

instead of marriage. The alternative marriage can also be used for showing if they should be

together or see someone else. Whether it be a trial marriage that helps or not, it still shows the

couple if they are compatible between each other or not. It could also increase divorce due to not

moving in with each other after marriage. Divorce increase in marriage is also caused by other

factors like the status of the couple, so cohabitation is not the only factor in divorce. Finally, the

benefits could have a great impact on the couple due to the greediness. They can also show
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benefits to the couple can put them in a bad relationship, due to one of them trying to “feed” off

the other. So, does this answer how cohabitation affects marriage?
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Jacob Baxter

Mrs. Cramer

English Comp 1 Pd. 8

21 Sept. 2018

Works Cited

Fox, Lauren. “The science of Cohabitation: A step Toward Marriage, Not a Rebellion.” The

Atlantic. 2014. Web. 20 Sept. 2018

Hughes, Robert. “Does Cohabitation Cause Divorce or a Better Marriage?” Huffington Post.

2012. Web. 20 Sept. 2018

Martin, Paige D., et al. “Adolescent Premarital Sexual Activity, Cohabitation, and Attitudes

Toward Marriage.” Adolescence, 36.143 (2001): 601. Student Resources in Context.

Web. 20 Sept. 2018

McKay, Kate and Brett. “Should you Live Together Before Marriage.” The Art of Manliness.

2017. Web. 20 Sept. 2018.

Williams, Kristi, et al. “For better or for worse? The consequences of marriage and cohabitation

for single mothers.” Social Forces. 86.4 (2008): 1481. Student Resources in Context. 20

Sept. 2018.

Zimmermann, Anke C., and Richard A. Easterlin. “Happily, ever after? Cohabitation, marriage,

divorce, and happiness in Germany.” Population and Development Review. 32.3 (2006):

511. Student Resources in Context. 20 Sept. 2018.