How to Pick a Mate: The Guide to a Happy Marriage

by Clifford R. Adams; Vance Packard

This test should show pretty clearly whether your chances of marrying are good, or not so good. Be honest with yourself.

1.	Do you sometimes compliment a person, even though it is not deserved?	Yes	No
2.	Do you prefer “different” or unconventional people?	Yes	No
3.	Do you often become involved in heated arguments?	Yes	No
4.	Are you a good dancer and a good mixer?	Yes	No
5.	Do your parents generally like the people you date?	Yes	No
6.	Do your good friends include both men and women of about your own age?	Yes	No
7.	Do you take an active part in two or more sports such as tennis, swimming, golf or bowling?	Yes	No
8.	Do you seem to get about your share of invitations to mixed parties?	Yes	No
9.	Do you and your dates frequently spend your evenings with other couples?	Yes	No
10.	Have you ever had a chance to become engaged?	Yes	No
11.	Do you seem to make a pretty good first impression?	Yes	No
12.	Do you weigh between 100 and 140 if a girl and 130 and 180 if a man?	Yes	No
13.	Are you generally in good health?	Yes	No
14.	Is your home cheerful and open to all of your friends?	Yes	No
15.	Have you met at least 20 members of the opposite sex in the past three years who seemed like conceivable marriage risks?	Yes	No
16.	Do your friends visit you frequently?	Yes	No
17.	Do you live in a town or area that seems to have as many young people of the opposite sex as it has of your own?	Yes	No
18.	Do you usually get along with the parents of the people you date?	Yes	No
19.	Are you under 27 if a girl and under 30 if a man?	Yes	No
20.	Do your friends seem to think of you as cheerful and sociable?	Yes	No
21.	Do you visit other towns three or four times a year?	Yes	No
22.	When you meet someone you know, do you usually speak first?	Yes	No
23.	Do you usually remember names and faces of people you meet?	Yes	No
24.	Do you like to entertain a date at home?	Yes	No
25.	Are you friendly or affectionate with persons you like?	Yes	No
26.	Would you marry a person three years younger or older than you are?	Yes	No
27.	Do you date fairly often?	Yes	No
28.	Are you a good listener?	Yes	No
29.	Do you find it easy to talk to strangers?	Yes	No
30.	Is your voice pleasing and modulated?	Yes	No
31.	Do you frequent places where members of the opposite sex are?	Yes	No
32.	Do you like to watch baseball, football or boxing?	Yes	No
33.	Have you “gone steady” with two or more persons?	Yes	No
34.	If a girl do you live west of the Mississippi or if a man do you live in the East?	Yes	No

The correct answer to the first three questions is no, and to all the remaining thirty-one questions yes. If you answered twenty-five or more of the questions correctly then you have a high “expectancy” rating. If you answered only eight or less of them correctly then your chances of marrying are definitely poor unless you take action to improve your eligibility.

Chapter III
Are You Ready for Married Love?

The answer to this question is deceptively simple. You are ready if you are old enough. But how old are you?

There are several yardsticks besides the calendar for measuring your age. Educators enjoy telling the story of the wise young orphan. When a sweet old lady leaned over and asked him his age the young man removed his glasses, polished them thoughtfully for a minute and then replied:

“My psychological age, Madam, is twelve years; my moral age is ten years; my social age is eight years; my anatomical and physiological ages are respectively six and seven; but I have not been informed of my chronological age. That, I understand, is a matter of comparative insignificance.”

When we ask you if you are old enough to marry, we mean mature enough. And maturity, as it bears on your readiness for marriage, can be measured in at least five ways: physiological, mental, vocational, sexual and emotional maturity. By these standards some people are not old enough to marry when they are thirty-five!

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