Annotation 3

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/04/15/opinion/sunday/the-downside-of-cohabiting-before-marriage.html?pagewanted=all&_r=1&

    It is the link of the piece which was entitled The Downside of Cohabiting Before Marriage written by clinic psychologist Meg Jay of the University of Virginia. The reason why most people agree cohabitation before marriage is that couples can know each other deeply and swiftly. They believe that it is better for a relationship. However, the writer opposed the belief. 
    In this piece, the writer wrote''  About two-thirds said they believed that moving in together before marriage was a good way to avoid divorce. But that belief is contradicted by experience. Couples who cohabit before marriage (and especially before an engagement or an otherwise clear commitment) tend to be less satisfied with their marriages — and more likely to divorce — than couples who do not. These negative outcomes are called the cohabitation effect.'' Couples who use cohabitation as a test are more likely to be the victims of poor relationship quality and and eventual relationship dissolution. One of his patients named Jennifer faced the problem of divorce even though she had cohabited with her boyfriend for more than four years. According to this case, we can know cohabitation is not the assurance of a happy and wonderful marriage. On the contrary, couples are more easily to get divorce. 
    Jay talked about cohabitation effect in the writing'' Researchers originally attributed the cohabitation effect to selection, or the idea that cohabitors were less conventional about marriage and thus more open to divorce. As cohabitation has become a norm, however, studies have shown that the effect is not entirely explained by individual characteristics like religion, education or politics. Research suggests that at least some of the risks may lie in cohabitation itself.''  The risks of cohabitation might be that couples live together gradually. And he thought that the process is like a slope.   Most lovers said it just happened bypassing talking about why they want to live together and what it would mean. Most women who cohabit view cohabitation as a step toward marriage; while men are more likely to see it as a way to test a relationship or to postpone commitment.
    ''Sliding into cohabitation wouldn’t be a problem if sliding out were as easy.Living together can be fun and economical, and the setup costs are subtly woven in. After years of living among roommates’ junky old stuff, couples happily split the rent on a nice one-bedroom apartment. They share wireless and pets and enjoy shopping for new furniture together. Later, these setup and switching costs have an impact on how likely they are to leave.'' The patient said it is hard to break up because they shared same furniture, same dog, and they had same group of friends.  The reason why they got married was simply because they reach their 30s and it was time to form a family.
    
    

Reflection

    In my annotation 1 and annotation 2, the resource which I use to support my point is not clear enough. I didn't find the information about the author. So I can't assure that the source is dependable and credible. And in my annotation 2, the digital data of my source is opposite to my partner. Under the same condition, different points will lead to different outcomes. It's an interesting result. Therefore, in my annotation 3, I would like to compare my result and my partner's. And I will find foreign source. Premarital cohabitation is an open issue for Chinese people. So many elder people are opposed to it. Younger people think it a scandal. However, western people such as American and European are much more liberal about it. I wonder whether they have different ideas on this issue. And in my annotation 4, I will find foreign essay. I want to use essay as a strong support of my point. Because essay is more formal than information from internet. Not only western but also other country will I seek. I think that different  races, society, culture have different opinion about premarital cohabitation. Compare them, and I can know more about the factors of approval and disapproval. It is benefit for my point.

    Eva & Vicky
     Their topic which talks about whether men should watch adult videos when they have girlfriends is very interesting and novel. Vicky approve it; while Eva disapprove it. In their annotation 1 and 2, they find many sources such as 洪蘭's research. I think their topic is a little similar to my topic. The outcome will differ from country to country. So their annotation 3 and 4 can search information from other country.  What's more, it is better if they have media source which could support their opinion.

Annotation2

     The following is what I find from an essay which is entitled Cohabitation, Marriage Values and Marital Satisfaction: A Study of Taiwan society written by Yi-Yin Jung and Ming-Chang Tsai.
   It points out why people who cohabit before marriage have lower marital satisfaction. There are three main points:
    1. For the poor, cohabitation is an alternative of marriage. The rate of divorce is related to low social status and poverty. So it is possible that cohabitation will lead to divorce.
    2. People who cohabit with mates have different values from others. They don't think that marriage is to fulfill parents' expectation or the obligation of procreation. They may pay more attention to intimacy and romance. If there is something wrong in their relationship, they are easily have quarrels and even break up.
    3. Some people think the experience of cohabitation can weaken the faith that marriage is a permanent combination. Cohabitation can let people enjoy some advantages of marriage, such as getting along with lover all the day. However, you don't have to go through the responsibility in marriage. It will make people think that marriage is troublesome and not beneficial at all.
    It shows that cohabitation before marriage doesn't help people get married; instead, it decrease the rate of marriage and increase the rate of divorce.