University of Utah Researcher: Republicans Have Happier Marriages Than Democrats

Newswise — A new study by University of Utah sociologist Nick Wolfinger and a colleague from the University of Virginia reveals that Republicans tend to be happier in their marriages than Democrats, and are less likely to be divorced.

Wolfinger and W. Bradford Wilcox, a sociologist at the University of Virginia, published the study Monday in Family Studies: The Blog of the Institute for Family Studies. Titled “Red Families vs. Blue Families: Which are Happier?,” the findings add to an ongoing debate over which set of political ideals help to lead people to a happy life, said Wolfinger.

“(The research) contributes to an ongoing debate about whether ‘blue values’ vs. ‘red values’ are better for families in America, and therefore to a larger partisan debate,” said Wolfinger.  Prior to the research by Wolfinger and Wilcox, other studies had claimed “blue” families were traditionally more strong and stable, than “red” families with more conservative beliefs. Wolfinger and Wilcox used a multivariate analysis of national data from the 2010-2014 General Social Survey to draw their conclusions.

“The party ID gap in marital happiness can be largely explained by the fact that Republicans are more likely to be white and to attend church regularly, both factors positively correlated with marital happiness,” said Wolfinger.

To read the full report, visit: http://family-studies.org/red-families-vs-blue-families-which-are-happier/