Older couples more in love than younger couples

TORONTO - Valentine’s Day may be for young couples, but love ripens with age, says a new Canadian study.

The study by researchers at the University of Montreal shows that older couples are more in love than their younger counterparts.

Older couples experience higher satisfaction in their love life after their retirement than their counterparts, according to the study.

Using the internationally recognized Spanier Dyadic Adjustment Scale for gauging satisfaction levels in relationships, the researchers selected 511 older couples in their retirement.

Led by university psychologist Gilles Trudel, they found that older couples scored between 119 and 120 points as against 114 by the average Canadian on this scale. According to Trudel, this is the first authentic study in the world to gauge levels of satisfaction in the love life of older couples.

Though many previous studies have concluded that older couples experience more satisfaction in their love life, the current study has given the empirical proof of higher satisfaction levels in older couples, he said.

Trudel said the low divorce rate among older couples also proved that they were generally happier about their relationship than younger couples. He said older couples who still enjoyed good health and had all their children settled, reported little stress in their lives.

The Canadian researcher said communication was the key to any relationship and in his study all happy older couples ascribed their satisfaction to good communication with their partners. The researchers have yet to complete the second part of their study.