AUCKLAND Marriage is more than a private emotional relationship it is also a social good with markedly better outcomes on average for children and adults, a recent trans-Tasman study found. Released on September 10, the report titled 21 Reasons Why Marriage Matters was commissioned by Family First NZ, FamilyLife NZ and several like-minded Australian organisations.

An update of a 2002 American study, the 24-page document includes New Zealand-based research.

The report finds marriage increases the likelihood that fathers have good relationships with children and marriage is associated with a host of better outcomes for children and adults in terms of health, life expectancy, relationships, mental and emotional well-being, education and a lower risk of crime and violence and poverty.

It concedes that family structure and processes are only one factor contributing to well-being, but also notes that whether society succeeds or fails in building a healthy marriage culture is clearly a matter of legitimate public concern.

As marriage is a social good, New Zealand should develop policies, laws and family and community interventions to strengthen it, Family First national director Bob McCoskrie said.

Previous research by the New Zealand Institute of Economic Research has shown the cost to the taxpayer of family breakdown and decreasing marriage rates is $1 billion each year and there are also significant human costs, Mr McCoskrie said.

The report concluded by calling for more funding for research into both the causes of the marriage gap in child and social well-being and ways to close that gap.