BY OneGoodLove
In light of the recent Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) ruling, OneGoodLove, the Internet’s leading relationship-focused online dating service for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) singles, announced the release of its “Marriage Equality State of the Date Report.” Findings of the report, based on a survey of 875 LGBT singles, suggest that while the Supreme Court ruling on DOMA and California’s Proposition 8 aren’t putting social pressure on gay and lesbian people to immediately “tie the knot,” many gay and lesbian singles are now more likely to consider marriage their ultimate relationship goal because of the court’s recent landmark decisions.
Improved Outlook on Marriage Since the DOMA Ruling
Sixty-three percent of LGBT singles surveyed said they were more likely to think of marriage as their ultimate dating goal now that the Supreme Court has struck down the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), with only 35 percent saying that their outlooks have not changed.
When asked whether or not the recent cultural shifts and gains in marriage equality would help their parents see their same-sex relationships in a more positive light, 37 percent of the LGBT participants said yes, 22 percent said no, and 41 percent said that their parents already see their relationships as a positive thing.
Thirty-eight percent of the transgender respondents said that the cultural shifts and gains in marriage equality would help their parents see their relationships in a more positive light, but only 13 percent said that their parents already see their relationships as a positive thing.
Eighty-seven percent of all LGBT singles reported that increases in same-sex marriage rights would not increase the societal pressure on them to settle down and tie the knot.
LGBT Marriage Material
Forty-four percent of gay and lesbian singles reported that honesty was the most important quality for a future husband or wife to have. Thirteen percent of lesbian women reported intelligence as the most important quality in a future wife, and 15 percent of gay men said a sense of humor was the most important quality in a husband.
Thirty-seven percent of all participants said that communication was the most important personal quality they would have to improve to make a future marriage work. Twenty percent said they would have to get their lives in better financial order to marry and live happily ever after.
Seventy-six percent of all gay and lesbian singles surveyed said they see marriage in their future. Only 66 percent of bisexual and 50 percent of transgender singles see marriage in their future.
LGBT Wedding Bells Ringing
Forty-two percent of all LGBT participants said they wanted a small wedding gathering of just friends and family, and 24 percent said they wanted a low-key ceremony and reception.
Only six percent of gay men wanted an “over the top party with everyone they had ever known,” while 18 percent of bisexual and 14 percent of lesbian singles wanted the same. None of the transgender respondents wanted an over the top wedding.
“This survey points to the tangible, romantic hopefulness in the gay and lesbian community right now,” said Frank Mastronuzzi, Co-founder and Chief Love Officer at OneGoodLove.com. “ Commemorating that hopefulness, on July 17, OneGoodLove.com launched a billboard in West Hollywood, California, reflecting the shifting dating and relationship goals emerging in the LGBT community. The billboard features two men kissing, with copy that reads: “First Comes Love, Then Comes Marriage.”
For survey details, and to see the billboard, visit the OneGoodLove blog at: blog.onegoodlove.com
