Relationships between adults at different life stages are not rare, though they have become more controversial over the years. Famous couples with large age differences, such as Sabrina Sato and Nicholas Prattes or Sam and Aaron Taylor-Johnson, are frequent topics of discussion. But the controversy may have an explanation. In 2014, a study analyzed more than 3,000 marriages in the United States and found an apparent correlation between age contrasts and divorce numbers.
Andrew Francis and Hugo Mialon, from the Department of Economics at Emory University, found that couples of the same age had the lowest divorce rates. A one-year difference increased the percentage by 3%; five years, by 18%. When the difference reached a decade, 39% of the couples ended up divorced.
A possible explanation for the high percentages may lie in the total number of marriages in these configurations. Although they have great representation in the media and among celebrities, the most popular age difference among American brides and grooms is only two years. An analysis by the Pew Research Center showed that 51% of married people in the United States have up to two years more or less than their partner; in 1880, the average difference between a couple was five years. In 2022, another analysis showed that, worldwide, heterosexual couples are composed of men, on average, 4.2 years older than their partners.
The correlation with divorce rates does not doom such marriages. The same Emory researchers also investigated multiple other aspects of the 3,000 couples and found even stronger relationships. Marriages with different educational levels have 43% more chances of separating; of this percentage, most divorces were initiated by women. Having children reduces the probability of separation, especially when the child was born with the parents already married. Couples also seem to divorce more when they earn less; in pairs with family income above US$125,000, there were 51% fewer divorces compared to those with income up to US$25,000.
The findings were published by Juliana Santos in collaboration with CNN Brasil.
Sources: CNN Brasil.