UK Wedding News
26/09/2016
The research, conducted by think tank Marriage Foundation, looked at the effectiveness of date nights as a way to strengthen relationships.
Studying Millennium Cohort Study data from 9,969 couples with nine-month-old children, the study found that 30% of couples went on date nights once a month.
This group had 14% lower odds of splitting up compared to couples who rarely or never spent an evening together without their children.
Interestingly, cohabiting couples with a similar date night arrangement saw no change to their odds of splitting up.
However, the research also found that when date nights become a weekly occurence, they can actually be detrimental. For example, 11% of couples who had date nights once a week (or more often) were no more likely to stay together than those who never made time for date nights at all.
Commenting on the findings, Harry Benson, Research Director of Marriage Foundation, said: "Couples are understandably keen to find the magic recipe for a long-lasting relationship. Date nights seem an obvious answer in an age where we are busier than ever and couples struggle to spend quality time together away from the constraints of family and home.
"However, date nights come below a number of factors affecting the longevity of a relationship, which include education and age. The single most successful way of staying together remains getting married. The odds of married parents splitting up are 57% lower than for cohabiting parents.
"A marriage is a contract, a public commitment to make a relationship work for the long term. We are geared to make more effort and to compromise more readily to make such an arrangement work."
He continued: "An occasional date night seems to be a useful tool in the box for married couples to show each other that their relationship remains a top priority.
"But it must not be used as an opportunity for one partner to vent their grievances; our research shows sensitivity and an awareness of the needs of the other is highly important to relationship success."
Sir Paul Coleridge, Chairman of Marriage Foundation, added: "This apparently light hearted piece of research highlights an essential truth about the importance of maintaining a stable and healthy marriage especially where there are children.
"Research, not only from Marriage Foundation, has emphasised over an over that the single most important factor by far in a child's sound development is the healthy relationship of the parents.
"And although that may sound a tall order the good news is that enjoying your relationship is the best thing you can do for your kids. And 'date nights' are surely the really fun part of that big responsibility. Neglect your relationship and your children are the biggest casualties."
(JP/LM)
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Married Couples Who Go On Date Nights 'Have Longer Relationships'
According to a new study, married couples who go on occasional date nights are 14% more likely to have a longer-lasting relationship, it has been claimed.The research, conducted by think tank Marriage Foundation, looked at the effectiveness of date nights as a way to strengthen relationships.
Studying Millennium Cohort Study data from 9,969 couples with nine-month-old children, the study found that 30% of couples went on date nights once a month.
This group had 14% lower odds of splitting up compared to couples who rarely or never spent an evening together without their children.
Interestingly, cohabiting couples with a similar date night arrangement saw no change to their odds of splitting up.
However, the research also found that when date nights become a weekly occurence, they can actually be detrimental. For example, 11% of couples who had date nights once a week (or more often) were no more likely to stay together than those who never made time for date nights at all.
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Commenting on the findings, Harry Benson, Research Director of Marriage Foundation, said: "Couples are understandably keen to find the magic recipe for a long-lasting relationship. Date nights seem an obvious answer in an age where we are busier than ever and couples struggle to spend quality time together away from the constraints of family and home.
"However, date nights come below a number of factors affecting the longevity of a relationship, which include education and age. The single most successful way of staying together remains getting married. The odds of married parents splitting up are 57% lower than for cohabiting parents.
"A marriage is a contract, a public commitment to make a relationship work for the long term. We are geared to make more effort and to compromise more readily to make such an arrangement work."
He continued: "An occasional date night seems to be a useful tool in the box for married couples to show each other that their relationship remains a top priority.
"But it must not be used as an opportunity for one partner to vent their grievances; our research shows sensitivity and an awareness of the needs of the other is highly important to relationship success."
Sir Paul Coleridge, Chairman of Marriage Foundation, added: "This apparently light hearted piece of research highlights an essential truth about the importance of maintaining a stable and healthy marriage especially where there are children.
"Research, not only from Marriage Foundation, has emphasised over an over that the single most important factor by far in a child's sound development is the healthy relationship of the parents.
"And although that may sound a tall order the good news is that enjoying your relationship is the best thing you can do for your kids. And 'date nights' are surely the really fun part of that big responsibility. Neglect your relationship and your children are the biggest casualties."
(JP/LM)
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