Unmarried Cohabitation In America

For many young Americans today, cohabitation, living together with a significant other while being sexually active, is becoming more and more common each day. For many religious affiliated individuals and older generations, the idea of cohabitation may seem absurd and ungodly. Many parents and grandparents disapprove of these living conditions and would rather have young couples wait until marriage. However, because of new generational thought, family experience, and experienced unsuccessful marriages, cohabitation may seem like the perfect opportunity before officially tying the knot (NMP and IAV, “Unmarried Cohabitation”). In an article published on StateofOurUnion.org, researchers from The Institute for American Values and the University of Virginia’s National Marriage Project recognize the growing number of unmarried couples living together today. These organizations discovered that more than sixty percent of first marriages in today’s society exist after a cohabitated relationship (“Unmarried Cohabitation”). Researchers from these groups also found that “cohabitation is more common among those who are less religious than their peers, those who have been divorced, and those …show more content…
Cohabitation has been a practiced idea since the sixties and still lives today. Many young couples today have thrived on this concept that it is becoming a marital prerequisite. While it allows more practice and experience for unmarried couples, it can also lead to some unwanted events that may occur before marriage or after marriage. Based on societal view, many young millennials have taken a step back from marriage and see cohabitation as a better option to avoid future divorce or unhappy marriages. They have also brought children into the world through these cohabitated relationships. However, if individuals continue to live in cohabitation, who is to say that any future marriages will ever