marriage and cohabitation

Question 1

aloping

Answer 1

two witnesses plus couple marrying

Question 2

civil wedding

Answer 2

no religous context

Question 3

marriage trends in society

Answer 3

• spike before ww1, war widows’ pension, securing their property, doing it before it’s too late
• drop in birth rate- absence of men+ not wanting children to be born into war
• divorce reform act- decline in marriage because people think there is less point, it is not as controlled

Question 4

ONS June 2013 statistics about marriage

Answer 4

• 1972- 480, 285 married in the UK
• 2011- 285,390 married in the UK
• first time marriage in 1971 average age: 25y/o men, 23y/o women
• first time marriage in 2011 average age: 32y/o men, 30y/o women
• 51% of babies born in 2021 were to unmarried mothers for the first time
• In the 1970s, there were about 400 000 first time marriages and today it is about half that
• about half of all marriages today are remarriages

Question 5

empty shell marriages

Answer 5

when the couple stays together even though there is no love left

Question 6

sociological views on marriage and cohabitation: Almond (2006)

Answer 6

increased emphasis on the needs of individuals = the need for rearing children in a stable relationship

Question 7

sociological views on marriage and cohabitation: Morgan (new right)

Answer 7

decline in marriage is a serious threat because there is more promiscuity

Question 8

sociological views on marriage and cohabitation: Giddens (1993)

Answer 8

people are looking for pure relationships, this enables fluidity when one or both determine that they are no longer satisfied with the relationship

Question 9

sociological views on marriage and cohabitation: Chandler (1993)

Answer 9

more people are choosing cohabitation as a long term alternative to marriage

Question 10

sociological views on marriage and cohabitation: Ruspini (2015)

Answer 10

changes to family life are driven by changed to gender roles: marriage to legitimise pregnancy is no longer necessary and women are able to invest in a career/education

Question 11

cohabitation statistics

Answer 11

before marriage:
women aged 25-29 are most likely to cohabit
men aged 30-34 are most likely to cohabit

youngest (16-19) are less likely because they are still dependent on parents

reasons:
- income increase with age, meaning they become financially able to live alone
- women cohabit younger because there are more female university students

Question 12

Same sex couples- marriage

Answer 12

• 2005- same sex couples were allowed to legalise their relationship as a civil partnership, cohabitation was their only option prior to this
• this gave them the right to the same legal treatment across a range of matters, but they still could not be officially married
• the government changed to allow gay marriage in England and Wales in 2015
• this type of marriage has thus been increasing
• same sex cohabiting was 70 000 in 2012