Shelley C. Gardner
SeacoastOnline.com
What are the odds a marriage will end in divorce? According to the Gottman Institute, which has been studying marriage and family trends more than three decades, the unfortunate answer is 50 percent. Its research shows that married couples are facing daunting challenges to relationship stability and survival, indicating that the family unit in our culture is in a state of crisis. In addition, couples wait an average of six years from the first rumblings of conflict before seeking help, resulting in significant damage, higher stakes as families grow, and challenging repair efforts in marital therapy.
Many factors contribute to marital conflict, and while every couple is unique in how and why discord develops, it is a normal challenge of married life. First, no matter how much a couple has in common, there are always individual differences that contribute to relationship dynamics and patterns.
Source: http://www.seacoastonline.com/articles/20091019-LIFE-910190304
