The Trend of Long Distance Relationship

Due to an ever growing and improving spectrum of technology which enables us to communicate in varied ways from across the world, long distance relationships (LDRs) are on the rise. In fact, in 2005, according to The Center for the Study of Long Distance Relationships an estimated 2.9% of US marriages were considered long distance, with 1 in 10 marriages reported to have included a period at long distance within the first 3 years. This means that in 2005 approximately 3,500,000 people in the US alone were involved in long-distance marriages. It is harder to know precisely how many non-married couples are in a long distance relationship but according to The Center for the Study of Long Distance Relationships there was an estimated 4 to 4.5 million college couples in the US which were in non marital LDRs.

Even if this data is slightly outdated, it is reasonable to consider that due to the increase in globalization those numbers must have grown since 2005. Another important point is that no statistics currently exist about long distance relationships outside the US (Also according to PerfectRelationship.com “About 1/3 of the married couples in large cities around the world are actually living apart due to job commitments, studies and military deployment”)[6]. However it is fair to assume that similar numbers are valid for, at least, Western Europe, South Africa, Australia and New Zealand.

These LDRs are due to social, environmental and economic factors such as participation in the military, studying abroad, increased opportunities to work overseas and the emergence of online relationships. Today we can telephone, e-mail, text, video conference, and expedite mail like never before.