Tag Archives: psychology

Ah…Natural Law

Cohabiting can make marriage an iffy proposition

Even married, men may still feel less committed

An expert addressing a “Smart Marriages” conference this week will drop research on his colleagues that may indeed make some Americans smart.

Researcher Scott Stanley’s case is this: Women living unmarried with guys and expecting a lasting, committed marriage down the line had better review their options. His research finds that men who cohabit with the women they eventually marry are less committed to the union than men who never lived with their spouses ahead of time.

Confirming Intuitions

This article doesn't say anything revolutionary, but it does confirm some intuitions about how men and women differ emotionally.

Men: Breaking Up Is Bad Only if Women Do It First
By Alison McCook

"When rating previous breakups, women view the process of ending of the relationship no differently if they are the dumper or the dumpee–but the same is not true with men, new research shows."

"According to researchers at Francis Marion University in Florence, South Carolina, men believe there was much more scheming on the part of their partners, less finality in the relationship and less working together during the breakup if they were dumped than if they ended the relationship themselves."

Skanky Teen Singer Barbie?

Thank Barbie for Britney

"Ruth Handler, legendary founder of Mattel Toys and creator of Barbie, the company's most successful product, died last week, thereby prompting the most urgent cultural debate since Botox made the headlines. Was Barbie, as feminists said, poisonous for young girls' self-image and the cause of an epidemic of anorexia and bulimia? Or was she – as conservatives insisted, taking the view that 'the enemy of my feminist enemy is my friend' – simply good childhood fun?"

"Actually, both sides are wrong. Barbie may not have prompted a national crisis in female self-esteem, but she's no innocent either. The vampy fashion doll helped to bring about the sexualization of childhood, evidence of which is everywhere today. In truth, Barbie is the not-so-spiritual godmother of Britney Spears."