Save the date (night)
Married couples that regularly go on 'date nights' are more likely to stay together, research has revealed.
Keeping the spark alive in marriages can be as easy as taking time out of your week to treat a spouse to the theatre, the cinema or a night out at a restaurant.
And don't forget to leave the kids at home.
Splitting up is reduced by as much as 14% in couples who make an effort and find time for each other once a month, The Daily Mail reported. Date nights are popular with the likes of former Prime Minister David Cameron and his wife Samantha, as well as United States President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle.
Harry Benson, research director at the Marriage Foundation, and Stephen McKay, professor in social research at Lincoln University, conducted the research. Interestingly, they found that the date night effect only worked with preventing breakups in married couples, not cohabitees.
They said that 'For married couples, date night has a meaning.
For the typical cohabiting couple, with a little less clarity and more ambiguity about the prospect of their whole lives together, the occasional night out has less meaning. It's less intentional, simply a night out.'
The Marriage Foundation evaluated statistics from the Millenium Cohort Study, tracking 9 month old babies born in 2000 and 2001 (as well as their parents) for ten years. Out of the 9,969 couples that participated in the research, 11% went on a date night once a week, 30% dated once a month, and 36% never did.
The odds of married couples separating were 57% lower than those among cohabitees.
What are you waiting for? Buy that new outfit, book that table and plan a romantic evening with your husband or wife- it's a fullproof to keep the spark alive.
What do you and your partner do for date night? Let us know on Twitter @theladymagazine using the hashtag #LadyNews
Keeping the spark alive in marriages can be as easy as taking time out of your week to treat a spouse to the theatre, the cinema or a night out at a restaurant.
And don't forget to leave the kids at home.
Splitting up is reduced by as much as 14% in couples who make an effort and find time for each other once a month, The Daily Mail reported. Date nights are popular with the likes of former Prime Minister David Cameron and his wife Samantha, as well as United States President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle.
Harry Benson, research director at the Marriage Foundation, and Stephen McKay, professor in social research at Lincoln University, conducted the research. Interestingly, they found that the date night effect only worked with preventing breakups in married couples, not cohabitees.
They said that 'For married couples, date night has a meaning.
For the typical cohabiting couple, with a little less clarity and more ambiguity about the prospect of their whole lives together, the occasional night out has less meaning. It's less intentional, simply a night out.'
The Marriage Foundation evaluated statistics from the Millenium Cohort Study, tracking 9 month old babies born in 2000 and 2001 (as well as their parents) for ten years. Out of the 9,969 couples that participated in the research, 11% went on a date night once a week, 30% dated once a month, and 36% never did.
The odds of married couples separating were 57% lower than those among cohabitees.
What are you waiting for? Buy that new outfit, book that table and plan a romantic evening with your husband or wife- it's a fullproof to keep the spark alive.
What do you and your partner do for date night? Let us know on Twitter @theladymagazine using the hashtag #LadyNews