The guy she was seeing was no longer a boyfriend but her partner. Rouzer said the title change was more than semantics to them. It symbolized their equal commitment to building a life together. While heterosexual couples in the UK and elsewhere have used it for years, experts have noticed more long-term heterosexual couples in the US adopting the gender-neutral term as well. Patricia S. Dixon, a psychologist and professor at National Louis University in Florida.
Millennials and Gen Z ers on social media use it as a show of support for inclusivity and to normalize the growing number of non-traditional relationships. They are more open to exploring gender-fluid, non-monogamous relationships and ones where marriage is not the end objective.
Those queries have likely been answered for most long-term relationships. A partnership implies an alternative to marriage while maintaining the same commitment to sharing a life together, said Domenique Harrison, a marriage and family therapist in California.
This title would, therefore, not apply to unmarried couples metaphorically stepping off the relationship escalator when mutually deciding to live together long-term. The United States Census reported that young adults cohabitating with an unmarried partner increased while marriage rates dropped. For example, when Rouzer needed to move across the country for her post doctoral research a few years ago, it was an easy decision for her partner to follow.
Dixon said people who are bisexual face challenges in relationships because many people wrongly assume it is a phase. Calling someone your lover is too intimate. A domestic partner or significant other may sound overly formal. Discovery Company. All rights reserved. Home Β» Lifestyle News Β» More straight couples areβ¦. Share This: share on facebook share on X share on threads share on linkedin share on email print.
