Housework 'a chief cause of newly-wed conflict'

Housework and a shortage of time to spend together are the chief causes of conflict among newly-weds, according to a survey of couples on their first year of marriage.

Of 77 newly married people surveyed by the voluntary counselling organisation ACCORD, 21 said housework had caused conflict in their marriages, with a similar number reporting lack of "quality time". Financial problems, interfering in-laws and sexual issues were cited as the next most common causes of conflict.

The report, How was it for you?, showed that participants who expressed the most satisfaction with their relationships during the first year of marriage had taken an equal approach to paid and unpaid work, including childcare and housework.

Those who had avoided debt, and resisted "pressures to judge themselves and others according to material possessions" were also said to be more satisfied.

Some 92 per cent of respondents said they considered themselves equal to their partners.

This figure may not reflect the national picture, however. As the report points out, the survey relied on volunteers who had undergone ACCORD pre-marriage courses. It said: "Couples experiencing significant difficulties are unlikely to self-select for this kind of research."

The report, which was funded under the Government's Families Research Programme, suggested there was a demand for age-specific pre-marriage guidance courses, as well as counselling courses for couples who co-habit before marriage.

The Minister for Social, Community and Family Affairs, Mr Dermot Ahern, said: "I welcome the report's call for additional research into the field of marriage counselling."