Free Republic

Marriage better supports individual and social wellbeing, and the government can and should reinforce its value through economic incentives. Cohabitation, not so much.In the wake of the sexual revolution, the increasing popularity of cohabitation is an alarming trend. Cohabitation, the practice of a romantically involved couple living together while unmarried, has doubled since 1995, with 12 percent of adults under the age of 30 living with their sexual partners. As cohabitation has become more accepted by Americans, there is also increasing support (from 65 percent of American adults, to be precise) for cohabitating couples receiving the same economic and tax...

Like its travel slogan says, Virginia is for lovers. But if said lovers are cohabitating outside marriage, they are currently breaking the law. But there’s good news for those lawless lovebirds: State officials in the commonwealth are considering a bill that would legalize cohabitation. Florida, Michigan and Mississippi have similar laws banning cohabitation. …

Study: Are Cohabiting Parents Bad For Kids? by Jennifer Ludden August 16, 2011 As more and more U.S. couples decide to have children without first getting married, a group of 18 family scholars is sounding an alarm about the impact this may have on those children.In a new report out on Tuesday, they say research shows the children of cohabiting parents are at risk for a broad range of problems, from trouble in school to psychological stress, physical abuse and poverty.The study is put out by the National Marriage Project and the Institute for American Values, groups whose missions include strengthening...

Couples who shack up before tying the knot are more likely to get divorced than their counterparts who don't move in together until marriage, a new study suggests. Upwards of 70 percent of U.S. couples are cohabiting these days before marrying, the researchers estimate. The study, published in the February issue of the Journal of Family Psychology, indicates that such move-ins might not be wise. And it's not because you start to get on one another's nerves. Rather, the researchers figure the shared abode could lead to marriage for all the wrong reasons. "We think that some couples who move...