Sex or generosity? Study finds what counts most in marriage

http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/45617291/ns/health-behavior/#.TuQVsHqOu8s

By Rachael Rettner
updated 12/9/2011 7:15:32 PM ET

Generosity between spouses is a key element to a happy marriage, a new study says.

In essence, generosity is the amount of giving that goes on within a relationship, which can mean anything from making your spouse a cup of coffee, to ordering flowers or providing a backrub.

In the study, couples who reported a high amount of generosity in their relationship were five times more likely to say their marriage was "very happy," compared with those who reported a low amount of generosity. All couples in the report had children.

When a person is generous to his or her spouse, "The underlying message is, you're valuable, you're important," said Dr. Anthony Castro, an assistant professor of psychiatry at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine, who was not involved in the study.

However, generosity was not as important as sex, researchers found. In the study, married men and women who reported above-average sexual satisfaction in their relationship were 10 to 13 times more likely to describe their marriage as "very happy," compared with those who reported below average sexual satisfaction.

But factors such as generosity may make sex better, according to the study. Couples who reported high levels of generosity, commitment and quality time together also reported high levels of sexual satisfaction. And wives were more likely to be sexually satisfied if they shared household chores with their husbands.

[...]

..