Cohabitation, same-sex relationships and one person households

AQA Sociology A Level Familied households

Cohabitation statistics

* 2.9 million cohabiting heterosexual couples in Britain
* 69,000 cohabiting same-sex couples

Reasons for the increase in cohabitation

* The result of the decline in stigma attached to sex outside of marriage
* Increased career opportunities for women may mean there is less need for financial security that is gained through marriage
* Secularisation

Chester

For most couples, cohabitation is part of the process of getting married

* 75% of cohabiting couples say that they expect to marry each other

Trial marriage

Cohabitation can be seen as a trial marriage

Bejin

Cohabitation among some young people represents a conscious attempt to create a more personally negotiated and equal relationship

Shelton and John

Found that women who cohabit do less housework than their married counterparts

Weeks

Chosen families

* Homosexuals create their own families based on friendships, which then turn into kinship.
* They offer the same security and stability as heterosexual

One-person households statistics

* 13% of the UK population live alone
* Single person household is now the biggest category of household in the UK

Reason for the increase in single person households

* From ages 16 to 64 men are more likely to live alone, as men are less likely to marry
* 65+ It is more likely that a woman is living alone, as women have a higher life expectancy than men
* The increase in separation and divorce has created more males who live alone, as if he has children they are more likely to live with the mother

Duncan

Living Apart Together

* One in 10 adults is LAT
* This trend reflects less formalised relationships and ‘families of choice’
* Many LATs were alone due to cost or location, but some preferred to live alone due to wanting to keep their house or because it was ‘too early to cohabit)