Maybe we should just live together…
Rejected proposal via www.shutterstock.com
Marriage rates have been falling for decades and are now at their lowest in at least 150 years. What’s wrong with getting hitched?
There’s nothing that everyone wants in a partner. But there are characteristics most men or women find attractive.
Leo Hidalgo/Flickr
We know a lot about why people choose different brands of dishwashing detergent. But when it comes to the processes behind choosing a romantic partner, science knows surprisingly little.
Blended, rainbow, single or two-parents are just some of the ways to make a modern family.
Shutterstock
It’s tempting to look back nostagically when thinking about the idea of the “family”, but the evidence shows that it’s strong, functional and flourishing.
What does a modern Australian family look like and how does it compare with 10, 20 or even 30 years ago?
Unhappy second wife?
Wedding by Shutterstock
If you can now have a same-sex marriage, why not polygamous one?
Bundles of joy.
Family via www.shutterstock.com.
Fall in love, have a baby, watch your happiness and satisfaction plummet. Psychology researchers know the transition to parenthood can be rough on relationships.
EPA/Alessandro di Meo
The ‘apostolic exhortation’ calls for greater understanding of divorced couples, but falls short of allowing them a full life within the church.
Women taking their husband’s surname after marriage potentially reinforces gender roles and the unequal status of women and men within marriage and society.
AAP/Robert McGrath
A new journal article has proposed that women changing their surname acts as a signal of fidelity to their husbands.
The majority of people at risk of forced marriage are under 18 and female.
Shutterstock
While some progress has been made in reducing instances of forced marriage in Australia, more needs to be done.
Is a relationship that’s quick to form quick to fall apart?
"Chatting" via www.shutterstock.com
When it comes to dating, take Nietzsche’s advice and have the big picture – finding a lifelong friend – in mind.
John Legend poses with wife Chrissy Teigen after winning an Oscar at the 2015 Academy Awards.
Mario Anzuoni/Reuters
When a pregnant celebrity announces “no hot nannies,” what does it say about parenting, gender roles and our culture?
Mike Ullett and Gino Meriano enter one of the UK’s first civil partnerships, 2005.
Gareth Fuller/PA
Should opposite-sex couples be allowed to enter civil partnerships? Many same-sex couples already in one think so.
Perfected!
Conny Sjostrom/Shutterstock
The requirement for marriage banns was introduced 800 years ago (almost to the day). Now there’s talk of scrapping them.
I’m not feeling a strong commitment to wed.
Couple image via www.shutterstock.com.
It’s less important how you feel about your relationship today than how you feel about it over time. Which of four commitment categories do you fit into?
What if Beauty and the Beast had a prenup?
Eduardo Rivero / Shutterstock.com
Prenuptial agreements often leave one spouse vulnerable in the case of divorce.
Seattle Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson and his girlfriend Ciara arrive at a White House State Dinner in April.
Yuri Gripas/Reuters
Men might not wear purity rings, but some are pledging abstinence, too.
Women in Kenya face issues of beatings, polygamy and being forgotten after bearing children.
Arsirya/www.shutterstock.com
African women have had to explain themselves to a world that does not seem to understand them.
Tony Abbott has flagged a plebiscite, or ‘people’s vote’, on same-sex marriage.
AAP/Mick Tsikas
Every generation in the last 150 years has seen in Australia a contest over marriage which reflects shifting positions on its defining features, and its associated rights and obligations.
‘Marriage equality’ is directly linked to gender equality.
AAP/Richard Ashen
At the heart of the debate around the language of marriage is a conflict about whether a marriage between same-sex partners is the same or different to a marriage between opposite sex partners.
The accused.
Ashley Madison uses an age-old marketing technique of tapping into people’s desires.