Drugs

Introduction

A major social trend of the last three decades is the decline in marriage and the rise in cohabitation. Over the last twenty years, the number of marriages has fallen considerably, while there has been a growth in the number of couples living together without marrying. In 1993 the number of marriages in the UK fell to its lowest level for 50 years and one in five unmarried men and women were cohabiting. The stigma attached to cohabiting in the 1990s is far less than it was two or three decades ago.

Consequently, many couples are content to live together. Some regard their relationship as a ‘trial marriage’, while others reject the institution of marriage and never plan to marry. Cohabitation has become socially acceptable although it is contrary to the most fundamental teachings of the Christian faith. This acceptance by society is, perhaps, best shown by the way language has changed - the term ‘'partner’ is now in common usage. Contemporary society seldom distinguishes between cohabiting partners and married couples.

Trends in cohabitation

Premarital cohabitation

The trend in premarital cohabitation shows that in the mid-1960s around 5% of single women lived with their future husband before marriage. By the 1990s about 70% were cohabiting prior to marriage. In the case of women marrying a second time in the 1990s, about 90% will cohabit before their second marriage.

Prevalence of cohabitation

Prevalence refers to the proportion of people in society cohabiting at a particular point in time. The proportion of single women cohabiting in 1979 was 7.5%, and this had more than trebled to 23% by 1993. Divorced men have the highest rates of cohabitation - in 1993 over 40% were in such a relationship. Taking all unmarried people together, over one in five were cohabiting in 1993 compared to one in seven in the mid-1980s.

The duration of cohabitation

The General Household Survey provides information on the length of cohabitation. Of course, the durations measured in this way are incomplete, for it is not known at the time of interview how long each current spell of cohabitation will last. Nevertheless, the calculated durations do give an indication of trends. At the time they were interviewed, 34% of cohabiting single women had been in their relationship for less than 18 months. The average length of cohabitation for single women increased from 19 months in 1986 to 29 months in 1993.

Debate in the Church of England

The rise in the prevalence of cohabitation has led to a major debate in the Church of England and a report commissioned by the Synod entitled Something to Celebrate gives guarded approval to cohabitation. According to the report, some cohabiting relationships are marriages in all but name and so the label ‘living in sin’ is no longer appropriate. The Archbishop of Canterbury, however, expressed disappointment that the report did not maintain a clear focus on the biblical ideals embodied in family life and society. The Archbishop stated, ‘the wisdom and truth of the Christian tradition (is) that a married man and woman and their children should be the basic building block of family life. Cohabitation is not, and cannot be, marriage in all but name... Those who choose to cohabit on the grounds that their relationship is a private matter and nothing to do with the wider society are, frankly, deluding themselves. Marriage, not cohabitation, is the institution