Childless Couples Are Happier Than Those With Kids, Study Says

[Swagger]

Who would have thought?.

But that is in the UK, you reckon same here in North America?.

https://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/01/13/childless-couples-happier-kids-study_n_4589368.html

The -- at least, that's according to research out of the United Kingdom's Open University.

The study titled "Enduring Love?" found that childless married and unmarried couples reported being more satisfied in life and feeling more valued by their partners than did pairs with kids. Unmarried parents were found to be slightly happier than married parents.

Funded by the Economic and Social Research Council, the research involved intensive interviews and surveys with more than 5,000 people of all ages and sexual orientations in long-term relationships.

Of those interviewed, mothers reported being happier with life than any other group, and childless women reported being the least happy, the study, which was obtained by The Huffington Post, revealed.

The child factor also influenced intimacy levels among couples. Fathers were twice as likely to cite a lack of sexual intimacy as the biggest downfall of their relationships, while mothers reported that they want to have sex less often than their partners do.

According to the research, simple expressions of gratitude play a big role in fulfilling marriages. Small gestures, such as telling a partner “thank you” and giving compliments, were shown to be among the most important factors in maintaining healthy relationships.

“What this study shows us is that couples need to keep investing in their relationships.It's reassuring to know, especially in these tough economic times, that it's the small gestures of appreciation and affection, rather than the big romantic displays that really make the difference," said Ruth Sutherland, chief executive of the relationship support organization Relate, which contributed to the study.

The results will be presented at the British Library later this week.
Earlier this year, The Stir's Sasha Brown Worsham shared 10 simple tips to sustaining a happy marriage. The article suggests laughing more, admitting when you're wrong and having your own interests.

 

[Leo]

I doubt I would ever get married.

Most everyone my parents and I know keep getting divorced.

What's the point?.

 

[Quincy]

Trust me they do not know what they are talking about.

 

[oldguyzer]

Trust me, they do know.

 

[Wanker]

Hmmmmmm

 

[Prick]

In other news, single men shown to be more happy than married men!

SHOCKING!

Look what the Chinese government said about it's women.

“He’s just not that into you.”


It’s the kind of message a woman doesn’t want to hear, even from her best friend. But it’s even more jarring when it comes from the Chinese government.


China’s state news agency Xinhua delivers the bluntly: “does the perfect man exist? Maybe he does exist, but why on earth would he want to marry you?”


Ouch!


It gets worse. “As women age they are worth less and less,” says another scary government soundbite. “So by the time they get their MA or PhD they are already old, like yellowed pearls.”


Why this full frontal attack on the female population? Says sociologist Leta Hong Fincher -- author of a forthcoming book Leftover Women -- the latest foray of the Chinese state into the bedrooms of the nation is to convince women they should trade in romantic ideas of love (or career advancement) for the hard facts of marriage at an early age.


With women in most Asian countries marrying later, rising higher on the job ladder and putting more energy into their careers than homemaking, Beijing fears that the trend will hit China’s homes sooner rather than later.


It appears to be working. Hundreds of Chinese women told Fincher they are “so anxious about becoming ‘leftover’ that they’re going to extraordinary lengths to get married, sometimes with virtual strangers,” she said in Foreign Policy’s online magazine.


That’s especially odd, because China’s one child policy has resulted in an alarming deficit of marriageable women and a surfeit of men, which should mean an overwhelmingly seller’s market. Instead, women who are better educated and higher earning than their mothers are selling themselves drastically short in marriages where they often sign away their property rights and financial control in return for the title of wife.


Hustling young women into marriage also makes little sense as long as China continues the one child policy. For all its harshness, it has maintained social order in the most densely populated country in the world. But it has also created a demographic crisis in which the fertility rate has fallen too low for long-term stability, as more people reach retirement age with fewer to support them.


Reports hint that the pro-marriage policy might be a prelude to easing the one child limit to two, or even doing away with population control entirely. With China’s government pension system also heading for the crisis point, that might be welcomed by people who have traditionally relied on their children to look after them in old age.


In the meantime, China’s wedding alarm bells are ringing. And young women are lining up to answer the call.


Olivia Ward is a foreign affairs writer for the Toronto Star. She is the recipient of an award for international reporting from the Washington-based Population Institute.

 

[God]

Look what the Chinese government said about it's women.

“He’s just not that into you.”


It’s the kind of message a woman doesn’t want to hear, even from her best friend. But it’s even more jarring when it comes from the Chinese government.


China’s state news agency Xinhua delivers the bluntly: “does the perfect man exist? Maybe he does exist, but why on earth would he want to marry you?”


Ouch!


It gets worse. “As women age they are worth less and less,” says another scary government soundbite. “So by the time they get their MA or PhD they are already old, like yellowed pearls.”


Why this full frontal attack on the female population? Says sociologist Leta Hong Fincher -- author of a forthcoming book Leftover Women -- the latest foray of the Chinese state into the bedrooms of the nation is to convince women they should trade in romantic ideas of love (or career advancement) for the hard facts of marriage at an early age.


With women in most Asian countries marrying later, rising higher on the job ladder and putting more energy into their careers than homemaking, Beijing fears that the trend will hit China’s homes sooner rather than later.


It appears to be working. Hundreds of Chinese women told Fincher they are “so anxious about becoming ‘leftover’ that they’re going to extraordinary lengths to get married, sometimes with virtual strangers,” she said in Foreign Policy’s online magazine.


That’s especially odd, because China’s one child policy has resulted in an alarming deficit of marriageable women and a surfeit of men, which should mean an overwhelmingly seller’s market. Instead, women who are better educated and higher earning than their mothers are selling themselves drastically short in marriages where they often sign away their property rights and financial control in return for the title of wife.


Hustling young women into marriage also makes little sense as long as China continues the one child policy. For all its harshness, it has maintained social order in the most densely populated country in the world. But it has also created a demographic crisis in which the fertility rate has fallen too low for long-term stability, as more people reach retirement age with fewer to support them.


Reports hint that the pro-marriage policy might be a prelude to easing the one child limit to two, or even doing away with population control entirely. With China’s government pension system also heading for the crisis point, that might be welcomed by people who have traditionally relied on their children to look after them in old age.


In the meantime, China’s wedding alarm bells are ringing. And young women are lining up to answer the call.


Olivia Ward is a foreign affairs writer for the Toronto Star. She is the recipient of an award for international reporting from the Washington-based Population Institute.

Cruel Damn-Not too smart

 

[Curly]

This is old news.

 

[j]

In other news, single men shown to be more happy than married men!

SHOCKING!

Single women happier than everyone!! :good:

 

[H.P.]

No need for a debate there.

 

[Charcoal]

No need for a debate there.

Nope.