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Marrying a Man who is Smarter than You May Mean a Happier Marriage
By : Dawn Bowman
26-Oct-2012
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When I was younger, probably in my teen or perhaps even pre-teen years, I asked my mom if it was better to marry a man who was smarter than you, of about the same intelligence as you, or not as smart as you.
My mom was pretty surprised and confused by the question and obviously unsure how to answer, so she asked me what I thought was better. (Sneaky!) I told her I wasn’t sure, which is why I had asked her about it, (obvio!)
My mom said something to the effect of, “Well pumpkin, I don’t think that how smart somebody is will be what’s really important. What’s really important is that he loves you and treats you well.”
New research indicates otherwise, in fact findings show that, “The likelihood a woman is satisfied with her marriage decreases by 40% when she is better educated than her husband, compared to when they are equally well educated.”
But is it the actual level of education that matters or something else that ultimately results from or coincides with that better education?
In general, the higher the level of education someone reaches, the more likely they are to find stable, rewarding work and to make more money doing it. (At least that has been the case until recent years when even college grads are having trouble finding jobs).
Could it actually be the higher income level or job satisfaction, and not the education level, that causes the difference in marriage satisfaction found in the study?
I should point out that a higher level of education does not, necessarily mean higher intelligence. Plenty of very intelligent, famous, and successful people either never went to college or dropped out, (including Johnny Depp, Nicholas Cage, Princess Diana, Bill Gates, Walt Disney, Richard Branson, Ringo Starr, Harry Houdini, and, of course, Mark Zuckerberg).
If it’s not the college degree or income level that’s doing it for the happily married ladies, are better educated men more likely to keep their wives satisfied in other ways?
Are they better in bed? More compassionate? Somehow better partners?
I don’t have the answers, but I’d love to hear your thoughts. Tell us what you think in the comment section below.
And yes, before you ask, my mother’s nickname for me has always been “pumpkin.” Despite her desperately trying to push me out sooner, I was born on Halloween, which my father thought was totally awesome. My mother, however, wasn’t a fan of the holiday but somehow still settled on giving me a Halloween-themed nickname.
I guess it could have been worse… she could have called me “jack-o-lantern,” which would have certainly been quickly shortened to “Jack-o,” which would have obviously been horrifying and creepy later in life (for paedo pop singer reasons).
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