Single, Dating, Engaged, Married

Navigating the Four Critical Seasons of Relationship

The vast majority of young people will still pass through the key phases of singleness, dating, engagement and marriage in theirtwenties. Yet they are delaying marriage longer than any generation in human history. Why?

For the first time in history, the average age for an American woman having her first child, 26, is younger than the average age of her firstmarriage, 27. More children than ever are growing up in fatherless homes, despite the overwhelming evidence that in everymeasurable way this is bad for the child. The Center for Disease Control also recently reported a dramatic rise in sexually transmitteddisease nationwide. In Rhode Island alone, since the onset of online dating, reported cases of Syphilis has risen 79%, and HIV hasincreased by 33%. Though many young people can avoid early pregnancy and STDS, most cannot dodge the depression and feelingsof isolation that...