Mike Pence’s “never dine alone with a woman” may seem like good marriage advice, but one marriage therapist thinks that it can lead to conflict. The idea of never being alone with another woman is dismissive of all women and makes it difficult for women to succeed in the workforce. It is possible to have friendships with people of the opposite sex without straying into infidelity. In order to avoid infidelity, spouses should be open with one another about their friendships, avoid letting friendships intrude on family time, and identify and address having “feelings” for a friend. At the end of the day, spouses must be able to trust both themselves and their partners and cutting off 50 percent of the population isn’t a sign of trust.
Key Takeaways:
- Refusing to dine with other women because you are married is discriminatory because it implies that the only thing of interest about a woman is her as a sexual object
- Different people fulfill different needs in other aspects of your life and are necessary in order to live well rounded
- If there are feelings involved in a relationship outside of the marriage, then steps should be taken to make sure that it is not taken too far
“If you rule out social interactions with all people of the opposite sex, you are saying that you don’t trust your colleague — or yourself.”