There is huge support for cohabitation before marriage, a new study based on a survey of 20 to 49 year olds has revealed.

The study found that 84 per cent believed it was better to cohabit with someone before marriage and more than two-thirds believed having a child with someone was more of a commitment than getting married.

However, according to the British Millennium Cohort Study, only 10pc of married couples will have broken up by the time their child is five, compared with 25pc of cohabiting couples.

The study, commissioned by the Family Support Agency also found that married people (25pc) and couples with children (21pc) were the most likely to attend religious service once a week.

The study, Attitudes to Family Formation in Ireland was launched by Minister for Children Frances Fitzgerald last Friday.

The study was authored by Dr Margret Fine-Davis, director of the social attitudes and policy research group in the school of social sciences at Trinity College, and is based on a survey of 1,400 people between the ages of 20 and 49 years. It examines attitudes to family formation and having children.

The study showed strong support for marriage, with 75 per cent of those surveyed favouring it as an institution.

Most people did not think it necessary to have a child to be happy, with just 39 per cent saying “a woman has to have children in order to be fulfilled”. Even fewer (29 per cent) thought “a man has to have children in order to be fulfilled”.

The average age for a woman to have her first child is now 31 and fertility rates are falling.

There are economic constraints, with 78 per cent believing most couples could only afford two children, and value judgments including 64 per cent believing it is better to have fewer children as “you can give them more”.

The study also found a majority of people feel it is more acceptable for a man in his 30s to be single than a woman.

It found that both men and women expressed strong support for women’s financial independence.

“In spite of the widespread support for women’s economic independence, their progress in the workplace was perceived by more than half of the sample as posing a threat to some men.” More women (67 per cent) than men (50 per cent) felt this.

There are still traditional views about roles in the domestic sphere. While men recognised women had less time to spend on housework, 73 per cent of women and 48 per cent of men felt the men did not recognise they had to contribute more than they used to. Women with children were the most likely to feel this way.

“The findings suggested that women’s success in the workplace may come with a personal price . . . The issue of housework was found to be linked with perceptions concerning men’s respect for women.”

There is almost unanimous support for the universal provision of childcare, with 91 per cent believing “there should be a national programme of childcare facilities for preschool aged children”.

There is a strong connection in people’s minds between work-life balance for parents and the provision of free or subsidised childcare.

“If people have to spend a lot on childcare they are more likely to have fewer children,” agreed 85 per cent.

Dr Fine-Davis notes: “Young men and women who want to start families, while at the same time fulfilling their own needs for autonomy and development, are facing dilemmas. These issues are particularly facing women with higher education, who are making strides in the labour force.

“It is often difficult to make the choice to have a child since childcare is so expensive and flexible working not always available.

“Unless social policy facilitates the sharing of child-rearing by both parents, women will continue to face dilemmas which prevent them from forming family relationships at an optimal time in terms of their fertility. It is time for policies to broaden to acknowledge the role of father as parent.”