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    Cohabitation

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    Cyrus Wanyaga
    Guzzo studied trends in cohabitation among young adults in the US. Some key findings were that fewer cohabitations now result in marriage compared to the past, with those from minority/less educated groups more likely to dissolve. The rate of cohabitation preceding marriage has increased as more people use it to "test" the relationship. Dissolution rates are higher for those who cohabitate multiple times or for reasons other than solidifying the relationship, like economic needs. While about 1/5 of cohabitations still result in a child, cohabitation itself is no longer strongly predictive of transitioning to marriage.

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    Cohabitation

    Uploaded by

    Cyrus Wanyaga
    6 views4 pages
    Guzzo studied trends in cohabitation among young adults in the US. Some key findings were that fewer cohabitations now result in marriage compared to the past, with those from minority/less educated groups more likely to dissolve. The rate of cohabitation preceding marriage has increased as more people use it to "test" the relationship. Dissolution rates are higher for those who cohabitate multiple times or for reasons other than solidifying the relationship, like economic needs. While about 1/5 of cohabitations still result in a child, cohabitation itself is no longer strongly predictive of transitioning to marriage.

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    Guzzo studied trends in cohabitation among young adults in the US. Some key findings were that fewer cohabitations now result in marriage compared to the past, with those from minority/less educated groups more likely to dissolve. The rate of cohabitation preceding marriage has increased as more people use it to "test" the relationship. Dissolution rates are higher for those who cohabitate multiple times or for reasons other than solidifying the relationship, like economic needs. While about 1/5 of cohabitations still result in a child, cohabitation itself is no longer strongly predictive of transitioning to marriage.

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    6 views4 pages

    Cohabitation

    Uploaded by

    Cyrus Wanyaga
    Guzzo studied trends in cohabitation among young adults in the US. Some key findings were that fewer cohabitations now result in marriage compared to the past, with those from minority/less educated groups more likely to dissolve. The rate of cohabitation preceding marriage has increased as more people use it to "test" the relationship. Dissolution rates are higher for those who cohabitate multiple times or for reasons other than solidifying the relationship, like economic needs. While about 1/5 of cohabitations still result in a child, cohabitation itself is no longer strongly predictive of transitioning to marriage.

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    of 4

    1

    Cohabitation

    Psychology‌‌of‌‌Adolescence‌‌
    2

    Outcomes, Shifts, and Characteristics of Cohabitation According to Guzzo

    The rate of cohabitation among young adults in the United States has increased over

    recent years. Guzzo (2014) set out to draw the relationship between cohabitation and its

    outcomes, that is, either officialization of the union through marriage or its dissolution. A shift

    observed in cohabitation is that fewer cohabitation efforts end up in marriage than before. This is

    attributed to the fact that those whose cohabitation efforts end up being dissolved are largely

    from racial/ethnic minority groups and less educated than their White, educated counterparts.

    Since they make up the majority of cohabitators, it is evident why most cohabitations are

    dissolved. While the dissolution rate has increased, the rate of marriages formed with

    cohabitation preceding it has also increased. More people live together before officiating their

    union so as to test and observe whether marriage would work for them. This kind of litmus paper

    test allows individuals to put themselves within a marriage environment without legally marrying

    anyone. Another shift in cohabitation is that the number of people cohabitating more than once in

    different times of their life has increased. These individuals face an even higher risk of dissolved

    cohabitation than those that experience only one cohabitation in their lives. Similarly, more

    people are cohabitating now, with individuals cohabitating for other reasons other than

    solidifying or officiating relationships, such as for economic reasons.

    An observable characteristic about cohabitation from the research and analysis

    undertaken was that cohabitation was no longer a factor that resulted in a relationship

    transitioning into marriage. The number of cohabitations ending before the unions could be

    officiated has risen steadily over the years. Cohabitations formed in the last two decades of the

    20th century also faced fewer dissolution rates than those formed in the 21st century. Individuals

    who had cohabitated and made a commitment to ultimately marry such as through an
    3

    engagement, faced higher chances of dissolution before marriage than individuals who

    cohabitated without committing to marriage. The rate of cohabitations which resulted in the birth

    of a child during its course stayed largely the same, with about one-fifth of all cohabitations

    initiated in the different year groups resulting in the birth of a child.

    Personal Views on Cohabitation

    Cohabitation has largely increased due to the increasing weakness in the faith that people

    had in the institution of marriage. Individuals want to grow themselves first and attain their goals

    before they can commit to a marriage. Therefore, before this time comes, these individuals can

    choose to live together so as to solidify and test their relationship and determine whether it is

    ready for the next step. From experience, most of these ventures end with the involved parties

    going their different ways. Having observed the relationships of my relatives and friends that had

    such a foundation, the general consensus would be that cohabitation more than often leads to the

    dissolution of the relationship between those involved. My view does not align with my family’s

    view because while the evidence overwhelmingly points to a negative outcome, my family

    believes that cohabitation is like marrying and that no legalities are required. They hold this

    opinion because for several family members this is exactly what happened and their relationships

    are still as strong to this date. This view does not align with my culture at the same time because

    the religion practiced, that is, Christianity, contests the notion of cohabitation. According to

    Christianity, individuals are only supposed to live together after they have married.
    4

    References

    Guzzo, K. B. (2014). Trends in cohabitation outcomes: compositional changes and engagement

    among never-married young adults. Journal of Marriage and Family, 76(4), 826–842.

    https://doi.org/10.1111/jomf.12123

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