New research highlights the enduring distinctiveness of marriage

New research suggests that when given the option between marriage and domestic partnership, same-sex couples in the United States overwhelmingly choose marriage. The findings indicate that marriage retains a distinct and powerful status due to its legal benefits, social clarity, and perceived level of commitment. This study was published in the Journal of Marriage and Family.

Social scientists have debated the status of marriage in American society for decades. One prominent theory, known as deinstitutionalization, suggests that the social norms and rules surrounding marriage are weakening. This theory posits that marriage is becoming less distinct from cohabitation, or living together without being married. For same-sex couples, this question has been particularly complex. Historically excluded from marriage, many couples relied on alternatives like domestic partnerships to secure legal recognition.

Domestic partnerships are legal relationships available in some jurisdictions that grant couples some of the rights and responsibilities of marriage. Before marriage equality was established federally, debates occurred within the gay rights movement regarding the value of marriage.

Some activists argued for assimilation into the tradition of marriage. Others advocated for domestic partnerships as a way to reject what they viewed as a patriarchal or overly traditional institution. The researchers aimed to understand if same-sex couples viewed these two forms of union as equivalent or if they preferred one over the other when both were legally available.

“The percentage of American adults who are married has been steadily declining in recent decades. One question we need to ask ourselves is: is the institution of marriage in decline or perhaps even dying?” explained study author Michael J. Rosenfeld, a professor of sociology at Stanford University.

Free daily newsletter

“One way to think about the question is to ask: what are the alternatives to marriage? Domestic partnership laws in some states, California as an example, were designed to offer the same rights and benefits as marriage. So when given the choice between marriage and domestic partnership, what did couples choose and why?”

For their study, the researchers utilized two primary sources of data. The first was an administrative dataset from the California Secretary of State. This included records of all domestic partnerships filed in California from January 2000 to November 2020. The researchers identified same-sex couples within this data by analyzing the first names of the partners. They used a database from the Social Security Administration to determine the probability of a name being male or female.

Couples were categorized as same-sex if both names had a greater than 95 percent probability of belonging to the same gender. This process identified 48,310 same-sex domestic partnerships. The researchers then compared these registrations with data on same-sex marriages from the American Community Survey. This allowed them to track how the uptake of domestic partnerships changed after same-sex marriage became legal in California in late June 2013.

The second data source was the 2022 “How Couples Meet and Stay Together” survey. This is a nationally representative survey of adults in the United States. The sample included 92 individuals currently in same-sex relationships. These participants were asked explicitly whether they would prefer to be married or in a domestic partnership. They were also asked to write open-ended responses explaining the reasons for their preference.

The analysis of the California administrative data showed a dramatic shift in behavior following the legalization of same-sex marriage. In the years prior to 2013, thousands of same-sex couples registered as domestic partners. However, immediately after the Supreme Court decision that allowed same-sex marriage in California, new domestic partnership registrations dropped significantly.

In the second half of 2013, same-sex couples in California chose marriage over domestic partnership at a ratio of more than 22 to 1. This preference persisted over time. Even years later, between 2016 and 2018, new same-sex marriages outnumbered new domestic partnerships by a ratio of about 13 to 1. This suggests that for the vast majority of couples, domestic partnership was a temporary substitute rather than a preferred alternative.

The national survey results supported the findings from the California administrative data. Among the respondents in same-sex relationships, the preference for marriage was dominant. About three times as many respondents preferred marriage compared to those who preferred domestic partnership.

When asked to explain their reasoning, participants provided clear distinctions between the two institutions. The most common reason for preferring marriage was practical and legal. Respondents noted that marriage offers federal benefits and tax advantages that domestic partnerships do not. They also highlighted portability, which refers to the ability of their legal status to be recognized in other states or countries. Domestic partnerships often lack this recognition outside the jurisdiction where they are performed.

Beyond legal rights, the social and symbolic nature of marriage played a major role. Many participants described marriage as signifying a higher level of commitment than domestic partnership. They viewed domestic partnership as a “marriage-lite” option or a status that implied a less serious bond. Respondents also noted that marriage is a term that is immediately understood by families, friends, and coworkers. This social intelligibility allows couples to communicate the nature of their relationship without needing to explain complex legal terms.

A minority of respondents did prefer domestic partnership. Their reasons often aligned with the theories of those who critique traditional marriage. Some viewed marriage as having too much historical baggage or religious connotation. Others preferred domestic partnership specifically because it felt like a lower level of commitment. This aligns with the idea of a “menu of options,” where couples can choose the legal status that best fits the intensity of their relationship.

The researchers concluded that marriage remains a highly resilient institution. Rather than fading in importance, the distinctiveness of marriage appears to have been reinforced by the fight for marriage equality. Same-sex couples, having studied the institution from the outside for years, appear acutely aware of the specific advantages marriage provides.

“My findings show that same-sex couples overwhelmingly chose marriage over domestic partnership, even though many in the gay rights movement predicted that same-sex couples might prefer the newer and less traditional option of domestic partnership,” Rosenfeld told PsyPost. “Marriage is a durable and flexible institution that is thousands of years old and is not going away.”

As with any study, there are some limitations. California was unique in offering a domestic partnership system that granted nearly all state-level rights of marriage. Most other states did not offer such a robust alternative, making direct comparisons difficult in other regions. Additionally, the number of same-sex couples in the 2022 survey was relatively small, which limits the ability to generalize the survey findings to the entire population with high precision.

Future research could examine how these preferences shift for younger generations who have grown up in a world where marriage equality is the norm. It remains to be seen if the specific legal and cultural distinctions between marriage and other forms of union will continue to hold the same weight as the political context evolves.

The study, “What Happened to the Marriage Alternatives? Same-Sex Couples in the United States and the Distinctiveness of Marriage,” was authored by Michael J. Rosenfeld and Alisa Feldman.