T.A.

Practice working through problems is a huge benefit of dating for a longer period of time. The researchers from the previously mentioned study noted that “feelings of frustration with marriage or with ordinary daily conflicts may not be interpreted as negatively by individuals who gave their relationship enough time during dating to reveal such problems before marriage.” Couples who are good at working out little difficulties will be better equipped to handle the bigger problems that life will inevitably spring upon them. This may not be the case with couples who date for only a few short months and subsequently do not get a lot of experience dealing with problems. The researchers hypothesized that “short periods of dating may mean that individuals do not get much chance to experience troublesome differences, and thus when differences inevitably arise afterwards, they cause greater problems to the marriage.”
(Do I need a transition sentence here?)
Cheryl Dakis is a pre-marriage and education coordinator in Melbourne, Australia who meets with a lot of couples preparing to get married. She suggests they wait until the first infatuation phase (usually about 6 months) is over before they even think about getting married. “Physiologically in that early flush of romance there are a lot of feel-good hormones floating around the body that change the way a couple sees things. The old saying ‘blinded by love’ is so true. We only see what we want to see. (Couples) need to get through that phase and really get to know each other.”
This may be a touchy subject for many Mormons. It is not uncommon in our culture for people to get married after knowing each other for only a few months. We understand how important it is to get married; the prophets have told us numerous times. The Doctrine and Covenants even tells us that we have to get married in order to obtain the highest degree of celestial glory. People often argue that if marriage is so imperative and you know you have found “the one” why wait? But this is not something that has been encouraged by church leaders. Elder Hugh B. Brown said, “Infatuation may be romantic, glamorous, thrilling, and even urgent, but genuine love should not be in a hurry…Time should be given for serious thought, and opportunity given for (each partner to gain) physical, mental, and spiritual maturity. Longer acquaintances will enable both to evaluate themselves and their proposed companions, to know each other’s likes and dislikes, habits and dispositions, attitudes and aspirations.”