美國調查：婚姻不是愛情的歸宿

Four out of 10 Americans say they don't need a marriage certificate to prove love or commitment, according to a new online survey.

Four out of 10 Americans say they don't need a marriage certificate to prove love or commitment, according to a new online survey.

Overall, 44 per cent of the 7,113 Americans aged 20 to 69 who took part in the poll by Zogby International and AOL Personals said they didn't need marriage to validate their relationships.

"People are coming online to find that special someone but that special someone doesn't necessarily translate into a marriage, and more so with the folks in their 60s." AOL Personals Director Keith Brengle said.

Half the respondents between the ages 20 and 29 said marriage wasn't necessary.

A majority of respondents also said they would prefer to live together first before marriage and most said marriage should truly be until "death do us part," especially those in their 30s (73 per cent).

Trust was ranked highly important to most singles polled, especially for those in their 20s.

Although 20-somethings said they were more open to experimenting with sexual relationships, they were also more willing to end a partnership over infidelity when compared to respondents in their 50s and 60s.

"Trust is still extremely important for the 20-somethings - they wouldn't work through any infidelities, they'd walk away," Brengle said.

However, older respondents were more interested in companionship, didn't feel the need to be married and were more comfortable accepting infidelity "as a part of life."

"They've probably been tested so they're much more accepting of things that traditionally you would think they wouldn't be," Brengle said.

"As such they're going to be less likely to have to snoop through a partner's things to try to find indiscretions."

The survey also found that as people age they are more likely to believe that more than one soulmate exists.

一項最新在線調查顯示，40%的美國人稱他們不需要用一張結婚證來證明愛或者承諾。

這項民意調查由佐格比國際調查機構和美國在線聯合開展，共有7113名年齡在20歲至69歲之間的美國人蔘加，總體來看，44%的受訪者稱他們不需要用婚姻來證明愛情。

美國在線的個人頻道主管凱斯•布蘭格爾說：“如今，人們都到網上尋找另一半，但這個‘另一半’並不一定會成爲結婚對象，這一現象在60多歲的人羣中尤爲明顯。”

在20歲至29歲的調查對象中，有一半的人認爲婚姻沒有必要。

多數受訪者稱，他們更傾向於婚前先同居；大多數人認爲婚姻就應該是“白頭偕老”，30多歲的受訪者中贊同這一觀點的人較多，佔73%。

在多數單身人士看來，相互信任十分重要，20多歲的年輕人尤其看重這一點。

與五六十歲的受訪者相比，20多歲的受訪者性觀念更爲開放，但如果對方不忠，他們也更傾向於結束感情。

布蘭格爾說：“對於20多歲的人來說，信任仍然是個極其重要的問題，他們無法容忍任何背叛，他們會選擇離開。”

然而，年齡較大的受訪者更青睞“伴侶式的關係”，他們覺得沒有必要結婚，也更容易接受不忠，並將其視爲“生活的一部分”。

布蘭格爾說：“可能是因爲他們經歷過，所以對於人們一貫以爲他們不可能接受的事情，他們卻更容易接受。”

“所以，他們不太可能再去做偷偷檢查對方東西，試圖找些蛛絲馬跡的事。”

另外，調查發現，隨着年齡的增長，人們越來越會覺得其實“知己”並不只有一個。

work through:承受