If your hubby is BFFs with your dad (whether you like it or it weirds you out), there’s a major bright side: A study of 373 couples found that men who reported being close to their in-laws were 20 percent less likely to divorce than men who said they didn’t have a bond with their mom- and dad-in-law.
However, the reverse is true for women: Couples were 20 percent more likely to divorce if the female half of the couple said she was tight with her husband’s parents.
Why? The Wall Street Journal reports:
The wife who feels close with her husband’s parents may find it difficult to set boundaries and over time may come to see their close relationship with her as meddling. “Because relationships are so important to women, their identity as a wife and mother is central to their being,” says [study author] Dr. [Terri] Orbuch… “They interpret what their in-laws say and do as interference into their identity as a spouse and parent.”
We can see that: Frequent input from your spouse’s parents can quickly turn run-of-the-mill arguments into pressure-cooker situations if you don’t draw the line. But it’s great news for folks who love to lavish attention on their sons-in-law.
The takeaway for women: Defend your boundaries and ensure uninterrupted couple time with your spouse happens often.
[Wall Street Journal via Yahoo! Shine]
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