Loving someone and feeling safe and fulfilled with them can be an indicator that a committed union, such as marriage, may be in the future. Sociologists researched traits that men tend to want their potential wife to have. These preferences include: Mutual attraction and love.
Unconditional Love
It's the primary reason why men get married. In fact, in a survey conducted by Pew Research, 93 percent of married people (both men and women) said love was the reason why they got married, and 84 percent of unmarried people want to marry because of love.
Like women, men want a life partner who will be trustworthy, faithful and reliable. They want a wife who will stand by their side and, considering divorce rates, it's no surprise that dependability would continue to be attractive.
Research has indicated that the average man takes 6-7 months to conclude if the person he is dating is marriage material to him. This low number may come as a shock to many people who are in unmarried relationships lasting years, which can happen for several reasons.
He Shares His Future Plans With You
Whether it is tailoring his decisions based on your goals or considering you before making major life decisions, he has you and your life together on his mind. If he frequently uses 'we' more than 'me,' it is clear that he wants to marry you.
We determined that the median engagement age in the United States is 27.2 years for women, and 28.7 years for men — a 1.5 year difference. Furthermore, the median amount of time a couple dates before the proposal is 3.3 years. But as we found, these numbers vary based on where you live.
Most couples date for two or more years before getting engaged, with many dating anywhere from two to five years. Once the question is popped, the average length of engagement is between 12 and 18 months.
In plain language: Men often feel most loved by the women in their lives when their partners hug them, kiss them, smile at them, and explicitly offer gratitude, praise, and words of affection. Men also feel loved and connected through sexuality, often to a greater degree than women do.
Men prefer a woman who can stay calm and relaxed. Beauty is more than make-up and a fancy haircut. Men find women more attractive when they are neat and clean. Men find women who smell nice, who have clean hair and hydrated skin more attractive than a face perfectly covered in makeup.
Men Avoid Marriage Because It's Too Risky and Too Costly. Men are not marrying because, for many men, the rewards for getting married are far less than they used to be, while the cost and dangers of it are far higher. Divorce rates are sky-high: 45% of marriages end in divorce, and women initiate 80% of them.
Men love women who are thoughtful, caring, loving and kind. A woman who does little things for her man for no other reason other than that she loves him. A woman who makes him smile back whenever she smiles at him. A woman who radiates love and warmth from her heart.
When he's going to propose, your man might start to act just a little weird. One of the biggest signs that he is going to propose is a change in his general attitude. He'll go out of his way to tell you how much he loves you. He's hoping you'll do the same; he's looking for confirmation that the time is right.
Fear…of commitment, of change, of loss of freedom. Probably the #1 reason a man hesitates to propose is because of some kind of fear. To be honest, he may not even experience this fear on a conscious level, nor would he label it as fear.
One lasting side effect for taking too long to propose is that your partner may begin to feel resentful. They may feel as though something must be wrong with them that is making you not want to pop the question. Or they may start feeling like you just don't value them or take them seriously.
Give Yourself Time to Know Your Partner Through the Good Times and the Bad. As a baseline, Ian Kerner, PhD, LMFT, licensed psychotherapist, couple's therapist and author of She Comes First, suggests that one to two years is often a good amount of time to date before getting engaged.
Each couple is different depending on age and circumstances, but a reasonable amount of time to be engaged is one to three years. Clearly, time is on a couple's side when it comes to the longevity of their marriage. But experts agree, there's more to a happy marriage than just years spent side-by-side.
The truth of the matter is that there is no right or wrong length of time to wait to get engaged. Some couples wait six years before making it official, while others date for just six months—it all depends on your unique circumstances.
10 Qualities That Make Her Wifey Material
The ability to handle setbacks in life. Caring for herself physically. A kind personality. Being able to love you for you.