Study: Borrowing Some Eastern Philosophies Could Lower Divorce Rate

As researchers continue to examine what causes divorce in the United States and how we can reduce the overall divorce rate, some are turning to Eastern cultures to study what makes marriages work in different parts of the world.
Kim Halford, a researcher studying Chinese marriages, relationships, and divorce, discovered that the Asian country has a surprisingly low divorce rate in comparison with similar countries. To learn more, she studied a number of Chinese and mixed-race couples in her own area to better understand their philosophies regarding marriage and long-term relationships.
Halford found that while Western couples tended to focus on emotional attachment, romance, and affection, Chinese couples were more likely to view their marriage as a partnership or team with goals to accomplish. While Westerners believed that marriage should be a combination of physical love and mental contentment, Chinese couples were more likely to see marriage as a commitment that would involve hard work and occasional rough times.
The researchers who conducted the study stressed that neither view of marriage was right or wrong – and that there were positive and negative aspects to each approach. However, there is a lot to learn from the information gathered during the study, and couples can benefit from learning about both cultures and philosophies.
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