Marriages: Some 'happily ever after'

(Public Domain)

In this age of cynicism regarding marriage, it is good to know that at least some couples make it to "happily ever after."

On August 5, 2011 Social Psychological and Personal Science published the results of two studies by K. Daniel O'Leary and his team at the Psychology Department of Stony Brook University.  The good news is that within a random sampling of "322 individuals married over 10 years" (from New York, no less), "29% reported being very intensely in love…"  The even better news is that within another random sampling of "274 U.S. married individuals, 40% of those married over 10 years reported being 'Very intensely in love.'"

According to a Pacific Standard article titled "Long-Term Love Not Just a Fairy Tale," these studies both involved "random digit-dialing" surveys" with "10-minute telephone interviews."  This raises some questions about how honest respondents might have been when asked by random callers to reveal their innermost feelings. 

It is nevertheless heartening to believe that at least many of their answers reflect true marital bliss.  However, what about the other 60-70%?  Are these other partners forever locked into humdrum patterns, or can they too experience eternal honeymoons?

Although these two studies reveal correlations of intensely loving marriages (such as "thinking positively about the partner" and "shared novel and challenging activities"), scientists warn that correlations are not necessarily the same as causes. However, these particular correlations might be worth a try since love is not essentially a logical phenomenon.

Resources

http://www.miller-mccune.com/culture/long-term-love-not-just-a-fairy-tale-34747/

Copyright November 15, 2012 by Linda Van Slyke   All Rights Reserved