The marriage rate has come down 65% since 1970. There are multiple factors behind this decrease, but one of them is what we might call the poor branding that surrounds marriage in the modern day. From all corners of our culture and from both ends of the ideological spectrum come messages that marriage is an outdated institution, that it hinders financial success and personal fulfillment, and that it's even unimportant when it comes to raising kids.
My guest would say that these ideas about marriage are very wrong, and he doesn't come at it from an emotionally-driven perspective, but from what's born out by the data. Dr. Brad Wilcox is a sociologist who heads the nonpartisan National Marriage Project at the University of Virginia, which studies marriage and family life. He's also the author of Get Married. Today on the show, Brad discusses the latest research on marriage and how it belies the common narratives around the institution. We dig into the popular myths around marriage, and how it not only boosts your finances, but predicts happiness in life better than any other factor. Brad also shares the five pillars of marriage that happy couples embrace.
Resources Related to the PodcastAoM Podcast #946: Counterintuitive Ideas About Marriage, Family, and Kids
Connect With Brad WilcoxDuty, Honor, and the Unlikely Heroes Who Helped Win the Battle of the Bulge
Season’s Screenings — A Tour of Classic Christmas Movies
The Hobbit Virtues
A Carpenter's Notes on the Art of Good Work
Unpacking The Emotion No One Likes to Talk About
Increase Your Influence With the Science of Immersion
Turn Your Anxiety Into a Strength
Counterintuitive Ideas About Marriage, Family, and Kids
The Cues That Make You Charismatic
The Japanese Practice That Can Give More Meaning to an American Holiday
The Leadership Qualities That Will Set You Apart From the Pack
The Lesser-Known Philosophy of the Iron Age Greeks
10 Unchanging Ideas for Navigating an Ever-Changing World
How to Avoid Death by Comfort
The 3 Types of Failure (And How to Learn From Each)
What Lifting Ancient Stones Can Teach You About Being a Man
Social Skills as the Road to Character
Protein — Everything You Need to Know
Zombies, Minecraft, and Dealing with Uncertainty
Dog as Cure for the Midlife Malaise
Create your
podcast in
minutes
It is Free
The Modern West