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Marriage - Coggle Diagram
Marriage
In the late 1960s and early 1970s, there were over 400,000 marriages a year, by 2017 there were under 250,000.
People are more likely to cohabit
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Even though it is declining, it is still an important institution because:
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Couples my cohabit, but this is normally before marriage.
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Changing gender roles
Liberal Feminists women no longer have to marry to become financially secure as more than half the workforce is now female.
The New Right
Blames marriage decline on moral decline with the acceptance of too much diversity and the broader breakdown of social institutions.
People are unable to commit to each other, resulting in lacking socialisation or the future generations.
Postmodernists
MOving to a postmodern consumer society is characterised by individual choice and freedom.
Secularisation has meant there is a reduced social stigma to cohabiting or remarrying after a divorce.
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Economic factors
Increasing property prices means for most couples it is a choice between getting married, or buying a house first.
The average deposit on a first time home is now over £30,000, with the average wedding costing £18,000
Evaluation
The decline of marriage cannot be restrained to just being about personal choice.
The decline of marriage should not be overestimated.
Marriage is in long-term decline.
Factors of explanation include changing gender roles, the impact of feminism and female empowerment, economic factors and individualisation.