Meeting Online Can Lead to Decreased Divorce Rates

Those of us born before 1990 can still remember the days before laptops, tablets, smartphones, and Facebook took over the world. Our lives are now dominated by the internet, whether we use it for school, work, shopping, news, or social networking. Today, more than one-third of American marriages get their start online. The shocking part? People who meet online and marry are more likely to have more satisfying marriages, which are less likely to end in divorce.

A new study, paid for by eHarmony, the popular online dating service, and written by the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences found that between 2005 and 2012, 35% of Americans who got married met online; and divorce rate among couples who met online was 2% lower than those who met off-line. One reason? “If you have good impulse control, you may be more likely to meet your spouse [deliberately] online rather than impulsively at a bar,” the researchers state. The study suggests that couples who meet at school or through friends have more fulfilling relationships than those who meet at a bar or at work.
Another reason for the success of online relationships is that people are more likely to be honest and revealing online. When people meet face-to-face, they feel self-conscious, or feel compelled to “save face.” Online interaction reduces or eliminates some of the nervousness and allows people to interact candidly, comfortably.
We see the advertisements for dating websites and tell ourselves, “I’ll never meet someone online. I’d rather give up on love all together than resort to finding a date online.But “online” isn’t a four letter word. It just might be the means to the end that you’ve been looking for all along. Your friends might tell you that you never know who the person really is, that he/she is a liar or a scam artist. Well fear not, Virginia provides an avenue for annulment of a marriage if your spouse isn’t who he or she claimed to be. You are entitled to an annulment if:
  1. Your spouse turns out to be incurably impotent, which was known to him at the time you decided to get married;
  1. Your spouse was convicted of a felony and forgot to tell you about it before you got married;
  1. Your spouse has a child with another, or fathered a child born to a woman other than the wife within ten months after the date of marriage;
  1. Your spouse was a prostitute prior to marriage and again, forgot to tell you about it.

Are you ready for marriage, but hesitant because of lingering student loans or low income? Read on about why marriage rates in America are at an all-time low, and the things you should consider before tying the knot.

If you’re looking for an experienced Virginia family law attorney or divorce lawyer, Keithley Law, PLLC, PLLC today by calling (703) 454-5147 and schedule an initial consultation in our Fairfax law office.

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