Men Seek Wives Who Are "Better Than Themselves"

Men Look to Marry 'Someone Superior'

Men who moan that their wives think they are superior to them may just hold the key to marital bliss.

A new study has found that men stand a better chance of enjoying a lasting marriage if they marry women who are five years their junior and more intelligent.

Researchers at the UK's University of Bath carried out a study of 1,000 married couples and found they were three times more likely to end up divorced in cases where the wife was five years older than the husband.

However, if the age gap is reversed and the woman is more educated, the chances of a happy marriage are improved.

The news comes as no surprise to Kate Taylor, a relationship expert for online dating company match.com, who says men look to marry someone who can make them a better person.

She said: "[The wife] is the more 'sensible' one, with higher aspirations and [the] husband looks to her for inspiration.

"I think men like to feel that they are marrying someone who is 'better' than they are in terms of things like education, spirituality and morality…someone he can look up to and emulate in these areas."

"He can put this kind of woman on a higher pedestal than someone his equal or below," she concluded.