Big Wedding Ring Brings Smaller Chance of Marriage Survival — Dave’s Diary

Gary Lewis and the Playboys, Sheryl Crow, Bon Jovi and Beyonce, to name just a few, have all had hit songs about engagement rings. The ladies' bling ring is a popular and pricey subject, but a new study out of Emory University found the amount that people spend on engagement rings and weddings is inversely associated with how long they actually stay married.To conduct the study, two Emory University economics professors surveyed more than 3,000 people who were married or had been married at some point in their lives. The study found spending $2,000-$4,000 on an engagement ring was associated with "an increase in the hazard of divorce," as compared with spending $500-$2,000, according to the study.

Right now married and engaged guys are thinking back and single guys are happily looking ahead!

The researchers suggested that wedding costs could contribute to future marital stress. The survey found that spending less than $1,000 on a wedding noticeably reduced the chances of reporting stress about potential wedding debt than spending between $5,000 and $10,000 did.

Given that kind of data, how can the average American couple justify budgeting  $29,858 on wedding expenses, according to a 2013 survey by The Knot? (Don’t tell the bride-zilla at this point or you will really learn what marital stress is all about!)

The Emory survey found factors associated with a lower risk of divorce were a lot of wedding guests and going on a honeymoon.

The study does not state that spending more on weddings causes people to be more likely to divorce, but rather, it highlights a relationship between expenses and the length of a marriage.