Licensed marriage and family counselor, Marsha Vaughn told WORLD that "several factors influence the divorce rate, including the age at which people get married."
Vaughn explained that the median age of first marriage is on the increase. "In 2016, the median age for first marriage was around 29 for men, and around 27 for women. That is up from 1990 when those numbers were 26 and 24 for men and women," she told WORLD.
Vaughn also believes that many millennials delay marriage because they desire financial stability, a college education and a career prior to marriage which "statistically speaking leads to fewer divorces."
"Millennials are the children of baby boomers," Vaughn points out, "And that's the generation with the highest rate of divorce." For some millennials this may cause them to shy away from marriage altogether. For others, cohabitation is the answer to the marital struggle observed in parents' failed marriages. While divorce rates are low, cohabitation is at an all-time high despite research showing that cohabitating relationships are far less stable."
In conclusion, WORLD reporter Anna Johansen explains that "Although fewer people are getting married, the ones who do are more likely to stick it out."