The usually accepted argument among psychologists had been that marriage generally reduces illegal and aggressive behaviours in men. There were, however, disagreements over the reason for this. A group of researchers now says that the association is a function of matrimony itself or as well as less "antisocial" men being simply more likely to get married.
The team of researchers from the Michigan State University led by behaviour geneticist S Alexandra Burt examined the data of 289 pairs of male twins, and came to this conclusion. their findings have been published in the December issue of the Archives of General Psychiatry. They found that less antisocial men were more likely to get married. And once married, the marriage itself inhibited antisocial behaviour.
The team started out by looking at the the effects of marriage on antisocial behaviour using a genetically informative twin sample to rule out the effects of genes on these associations. For this, they delved into the data of 289 pairs of male twins. These twins were assessed four times, at ages 17, 20, 24 and 29.
Among their initial observations was that men with lower levels of antisocial behaviour at ages 17 and 20 were more likely to have married by age 29 (which the team used as a cut-off mark for marriage). This, the researchers argue, is a significant fact since earlier studies of a similar vein had not found any support that selection process influenced reduced rates of antisocial behavior among married men.
Once married, the researchers found, the rates of antisocial behaviour declined even more. When comparing identical twins in which one twin had married while the other had not, the married twin generally engaged in lower levels of antisocial behaviour than did the unmarried twin.
The researchers argue that while marriage may not directly inhibit men's antisocial behaviour, marriage itself is a arker for other elements such as social bonding or less time spent with delinquent peers. Marriage equality too is a factor. Burt argues that the effect of marriage on antisocial behaviour is stronger in better marriages.
According to Burt, the present study would differ from the findings of earlier ones since marital rates have declined significantly in recent years.
The study is available online (PDF).
