Researchers at the University of Texas at Austin conducted a study where the ideal VS actual marriage proposals for approximately 400 newly engaged and newly married individuals were examined. The objective was to see how close actual proposals come to the ideal that people often hold about what the experience of a marriage proposal should be like. Not surprisingly, these two did not match up for many people.
Some of what they found was:
75% of people were satisfied with how public VS private their proposal actually was—so 25% wanted it more one way than the other. Most often it was that they had preferred a more private affair to the one they got.
Overall, their actual proposal was significantly less romantic than their ideal one. Somehow it just didn’t contain the romance they thought or expected it would.
The most popular time for proposals is the evening and most of those surveyed were happy with the time their partner proposed. However most would have wanted to change the location or who was present (this is probably where the romance got lost for them).
The top 6 ideal proposal locations were–by water, home, at a restaurant, on a walk, or at an international destination (like France) were tied at 4th/5th, and 6th was at a park or garden. These were then compared to the top 6 actual proposal locations, which were—home, by the water, at a restaurant, in a park or garden, and while on a walk/hike. Therefore these were not too far from the actual ideal places that folks had in mind.
43% of parents knew about the proposal in advance, 15 % of siblings knew, and 19% of friends did. Interestingly, 37.5 asked for parental approval ahead of time—seems almost like an outdated notion, right? Maybe not.
If you are anticipating a proposal soon, you may want to help your partner out by telling a family member and friend what your ideal proposal would be, as they will share this if consulted. It’s also OK to drop a hint or two directly to your significant other. If you are the one planning to pop the question, get input from others close to them—you just might be able to plan an almost ideal proposal for your intended.
