An American sociologist and author is making the case that marriage can help save civilisation. Dr. Brad Wilcox from the University of Virginia and director of The National Marriage Project says nothing predicts happiness in life better than a good marriage.
In his new book, Get Married, Why Americans Must Defy the Elites, Forge Strong Families, and Save Civilization, Dr. Wilcox explains that many of the world’s problems have their roots in the anti-family message and policies coming out of Washington D.C., Hollywood, and both the mainstream and social media, which he interprets as basically: Stay single without kids and make lots of money.
“So, I think what’s striking about both the online right and the mainstream left is they’re often telling us that the path to prosperity and the path to happiness runs away from marriage and family, and yet the facts tell us exactly the opposite. The path to prosperity runs towards marriage, and the path towards happiness runs towards marriage as well,” said Dr. Wilcox.
“We’re sitting here in the shadow of Thomas Jefferson’s university and his home is just over there on the hill, Monticello. And he, of course, was the author of the Declaration of Independence and mentioned in that declaration is the importance of the pursuit of happiness. The American civilisation that we’re seeing now today, unfortunately, is that happiness in America is falling,” he observed to CBN News, blaming that decline on fewer Americans tying the knot.
“What’s happened to marriage in the last 50 years is that marriage has remained pretty strong among upper-middle-class Americans who have that college degree and who are more affluent in one way or another. But for Americans who are in that more working-class bracket, who don’t have that college degree, who have an income between about A$30,000-A$75,000, they’re really seeing their marital fortunes decline a lot in recent decades,” the sociologist report.
Dr. Wilcox cited two main factors. One was working-class men are less likely to have full-time employment making them less desirable as marriage partners. The other was that government programs like Medicaid may pay more if you have kids and don’t get married. “So there’s a connection between the way in which our public policies unintentionally end up penalising marriage for working-class couples, which is a shame,” he concluded.
For those who do choose marriage, he found only good news:
- Married men earn more than their single peers, even compared to those with similar backgrounds
- Both men and women who get and stay married accumulate greater wealth
- Married men and women with families are less lonely, less prone to suicide, and report more meaningful lives overall
- Husbands and wives who adopt a “we-before-me” approach to marriage are happier and less divorce prone
He found the happiest group of of all to be married couples who attend religious services and live out their faith. “People who are married and who are churchgoing are the happiest Americans. And that’s because both folks who enjoy the benefit of a spouse and those who enjoy the benefit of being part of a traditional community, a church community, are more likely to be embedded in intense social relationships that give their lives a sense of meaning, direction, happiness, purpose, and solidarity. And that translates into more happiness,” Dr. Wilcox explained.
He added that statistics show couples who truly practice their faith are more likely to stay together as opposed to those who just identify as Christian. “People who attend church at least once a week are between 30% and 50% less likely to get divorced. It doesn’t divorce-proof your marriage, but it certainly reduces your risk of divorce,” he added.
In his book Get Married Dr. Wilcox makes the case that marriage is our most important institution. “I think this is because we’re social animals, as Aristotle said. And really, nothing matters for us more than the quality of our relations with friends, and even more so with family. So, it’s kind of the core institution for basically guiding and directing the most central institution in our lives,” he concluded.
