While millennial culture is often looked down upon by generations before them, today’s millennials have managed to create positive change in at least one aspect of life: having a healthy marriage.
According to new data from the University of Maryland, the divorce rate has fallen significantly in recent years and the largest decreases have been among individuals aged 20-40 years.
From 2008-2010, there was a divorce rate of about 35 divorces per 1,000 married women who were 25 years of age. In 2014-2016, that rate dropped roughly 20 percent to approximately 28 divorces per 1,000 married women in that same age category. During this time, significant decreases in the divorce rate from 2008-2010 till 2014-2016 were observed across all age groups from 20 to 40 years old.
According to the researchers, there are multiple reasons for the decrease in the divorce rate, but the main reason appears that young people are waiting longer to get married, which in turn leads to more educated married couples.
“One of the reasons for the decline is that the married population is getting older and more highly educated,” said Philip Cohen, a professor of sociology and lead author of the study. “Marriage is more and more an achievement of status, rather than something that people do regardless of how they’re doing.”
While social science has shown that marriage and a stable household can be a key antidote to avoiding poverty, there is ample reason to believe that waiting to tie the knot may eventually produce a more happy and healthy marriage.
For example, money has been shown to be a significant factor in many divorces, possibly due to the added stress and tension over debt. With today’s millennials carry record amounts of student loan debt that often takes years to pay off, postponing a major life decision until one has their finances in order may be a wise move to ensuring a healthy marriage.
Finally, couples that get married at a later age will have hopefully matured further as well, allowing them to be better prepared for the prospect of having children and raising a family. While bringing a child into the world is a very rewarding experience, it can also bring enormous amounts of stress and anxiety in the first few years of the child’s life. Waiting until one has the appropriate level of maturity needed to raise children is a wise decision and will help ensure a stronger family bond.
John Patrick (@john_pat_rick) is a graduate of Canisius College and Georgia Southern University. He interned for Red Alert Politics during the summer of 2012 and has continued to contribute regularly.
