By Mike McManus Perhaps half of all marriages involve one partner who was previously married. If children are involved, 70% of stepfamilies will divorce, putting everyone through another trauma. However, four of five of these marriages can be saved. Why do so many of these marriages fail? “Putting together or integrating a stepfamily is one […]
Move Over First Families: Stepfamilies Are the New Game in Town
By Beverly Willett A few days ago, Honey Maid, the maker of a wide variety of well-known graham cracker products including the honey-flavored Teddy Grahams I once served my own children, unleashed the second installment in its “This is Wholesome” campaign.[1] The campaign, which is accompanied by two videos, celebrates stepfamilies, and was scheduled to coincide […]
Is “Married At First Sight” A Recipe for Happily Ever After?
By Seth Eisenberg The new American television series “Married At First Sight” follows six people as they discover if married at first sight can last. Personally, I know love at first sight can last. A lasting, happy marriage, however, is about much more than the feelings that come up at the first sight of a potential partner for life. My […]
Note to Millennials — It’s Not All About You
By Chris Gersten “Isn’t testing a marriage, like we test a username, simply-well, logical” journalist Jessica Bennett asks in a recent article for Time entitled “The Beta Marriage: How Millennials Approach ‘I Do.’” For Bennett, the answer to this question seems obvious: If the institution of marriage is in trouble in our country, let’s take […]
“Beta Marriage” Isn’t a Better Marriage
By Greg Griffin I’m intrigued by the recent article in Time Magazine suggesting that millennials try out a “beta marriage” model instead of marriage as we have understood it through the ages. Like many of us, millennials too see life as a series of multiple choice options, all within their control. Frankly, they also view […]
Marry First
By Julie Baumgardner Remember the rhyme, “First comes love, then comes marriage, then comes baby in the baby carriage”? Not so anymore. Over the past decade there has been a shift in the sequence of marriage and having babies. New research indicates 57 percent of mothers between the age of 26 and 31 are unmarried when […]
Conscious Uncoupling: Another View
By Seth Eisenberg I have to admit, I became “consciously uncoupled” long before Gwyneth Paltrow and Chris Martin created a national conversation about the phrase. My parents became consciously uncoupled before my fourth birthday. I admit this as someone proud to consider myself among the most passionate proponents of marriage. When TIME Magazine interviewed me a few years ago about […]
Why Not Conscious Re-coupling?
I find it sad when any couple splits, especially couples with children. I feel the same way about Gwyneth Paltrow and her soon-to-be ex-husband. When there’s some sort of abuse, it’s equally sad, but it’s also understandable when a spouse calls it quits. That’s not the case here. And I’m more than a bit annoyed […]
America’s Dismantling of Marriage
Earlier this month, columnist Cynthia Allen reflected on America’s on-going debate about marriage and the historical connection between marriage and economic outcomes, especially for children. “Marriage is not a silver bullet,” she said, but she also pointed out the failure of decades-long policies in our war on poverty, suggesting that there might be something to […]
The Real Deal about Government-Funded Marriage Programs
By John Crouch If you have opinions about “the government getting involved in marriage”, you need to get some facts about it, too. I can’t think of a better place to start than this article by Scott Stanley. Dr. Stanley had been a leader in marriage skills education, and in studies of its impact, long before conservatives […]
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