Rising Expectation of Marriage

• Functionalist sociologist e.g. Ronal Fletcher (1966), argue that the higher expectation people place on marriage today are a major cause of rising divorce rates
• Romantic Love → The belief that marriage should be based solely on love and that for each individual there is a Mr or Miss Right out there
• If the love dies, there is no longer justification to remain married
• Graham Allan and Graham Crow (2001) → “Love, personal commitment and intrinsic satisfaction are now seen as the cornerstone of marriage. The absence of these feelings is itself justification for ending the relationship”