Cohabitation: a Recipe for Marital Ruin
Shown to Put Partners and Kids at Risk
OTTAWA, OCT. 1, 2005

(Zenit.org).- Living together is an increasingly popular option in many countries. But it can involve high social and emotional costs, says a new study, "Cohabitation and Marriage: How Are They Related?" The Ottawa-based Vanier Institute of the Family published the study Sept. 17.

The author, Anne-Marie Ambert, brings together the results of hundreds of research papers that examined the social, emotional and financial effects of cohabitation and marriage on men, women, children and society.

Cohabitation, the study observes, is often seen as entailing fewer responsibilities at a legal or financial level, and less fidelity than marriage. In recent years, however, de facto couples have sought and gained rights similar to those of married couples, in areas such as property, health insurance, pension plans, and child support.

Ambert notes that in Canada the marriage rate steeply declined in the 1990s, particularly in the province of Quebec. The United States has also seen marriage rates drop, though not as much as in Canada.

In both countries, the number of cohabiting couples has risen sharply. In 2000, more than 4.1 million heterosexual couples in the United States and 1.3 million in Canada cohabited. In 2001, 16% of all Canadian couples and 8.2% of all American couples were cohabiting. In Quebec the level reached 30%, the same proportion as in Sweden. Excluding Quebec, 11.7% of Canadian couples cohabit.

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