This post was originally published at The Conversation. When a couple marry in a church, synagogue or mosque, the ceremony does more than sanctify a union. Often, it binds two families to an institution. For centuries, marriage and child-rearing have been among the main ways adults are integrated into congregational
This article was originally published at The Conversation. In 1960, 72% of adults were married, and over 90% would go on to marry. HR policies and management practices back then catered to nuclear families with a lone, male breadwinner. Today, dual-career couples and working mothers are common, largely due to the growth of women in the workforce in
This post was originally published at The Conversation. Every February, Valentine’s Day amplifies what single people already know – that public life is built for two. Restaurants roll out prix fixe menus for couples. Hotels promote “romantic getaway” packages designed for double occupancy. A table for one still invites the
An open letter to my students: Are you a dog or a wolf? Dear Students, One cold, windy night, a hungry wolf prowled the outskirts of a farm, searching for its next meal. In the fenced-in yard, it spotted a dog—plump, well-fed, lounging without a care in the world. The
I’ve been tracking the Solo shift. Who will see it next? In their recent cover story, “The Great Relationship Recession: The Rise of Singlehood is Reshaping the World,” (link but paywalled at the moment). The Economist takes note of the precursors of what I call the Solo Economy: a striking
Yesterday, I published this article about how Singles’ Day is coming to America. On November 11, billions will be spent on Singles’ Day — the world’s largest shopping event, dwarfing Black Friday and Cyber Monday combined. What began as a playful celebration of singledom among Chinese undergraduates has been transformed by Alibaba into
This post was originally published at The Conversation. On Nov. 11 each year, a curious holiday takes over China. What began among Nanjing University students in the 1990s as a tongue-in-cheek counter to Valentine’s Day has exploded into the world’s largest shopping event: Singles’ Day. The date, 11/11, was chosen
An Open Letter to My (Tenured) Colleagues: What Will You Do With Your Freedom? Dear Colleagues, I’ve been invited to serve as a panelist at the Association for Consumer Research’s Mid-Career Workshop—a gathering to help newly tenured scholars figure out “now what?” I’ve been asking the same question myself. Tenured.
Peter McGraw is joined by David Jitendranath for a Solo Book Club episode on Søren Kierkegaard’s The Present Age. They discuss why this slim,
Welcome to the final episode of I’M NOT JOKING. Comedian JD Lopez returns from Episode 1 to debrief and reflect on Peter’s experience building
