Seeing your mother-in-law is good for you: How seeing your other half's mum actually helps keep marital happiness

They may be the traditional butt of funny men's jokes, but new research has shown that seeing your mother-in-law is good for you.
While the stereotype paints them as difficult, judgmental and troublesome figures, it turns out that contact with both your mother-in-law and your mother once week will make you happier than other married people, a study in Australia has revealed.
A survey into wellbeing by Deakin University in Victoria found that those who see just their mother or mother-in-law once a week are less happy, while those who see both on a regular basis are much more fulfilled.

Truth and fiction: The 2004 film 'Monster-in-Law', starring Jane Fonda, left, and Jennifer Lopez, right, explores the fraught relationship some people have with their mother-in-laws

Researcher Melissa Weinberg said the counter-intuitive finding is really pointing to the importance of relationships in happiness and wellbeing: 'It reflects the importance of
having a close family unit,' she said.

Those who had frequent contact with both a mother and mother-in-law were benefiting from two sources of close maternal support, two people who could help around the house and with the children, she said.
'This shows that people with a balanced family life are likely to have higher well-being than those who are seeing more of one side of the family and less of the other,' she says.

Wellbeing Index: The Australian Unity Wellbeing Index was carried out by researchers at Deakin University in Victoria

If a relationship was maintained with only one mother figure 'then there is an imbalance in the family, perhaps with disappointment or even resentment by the non-connected partner,' the study says.
The Australian Unity Wellbeing Index found those who had weekly contact with their mother and mother-in-law had a wellbeing score of 78.7, well above the normal range of 73.7-76.7.
Those in frequent contact with their mother had a well-being score of 74 out of 100 and those who saw their mother-in-law scored 73.1.
Those who rarely or never saw either their mother and mother-in-law had a below average well being score of 71.6.

Family first: For the first time, the survey also asked people how they would spend two hours a week to do anything they wanted. Most people chose to spend it with their family (12%) while the smallest proportion chose sex

The telephone survey of 2000 Australians found that overall personal wellbeing, a measure of people's satisfaction with their own lives, has remained virtually unchanged since late 2011.
For the first time, the survey asked people how they would spend two hours a week to do anything they wanted.
Most people chose to spend it with their family (12%) while the smallest proportion chose sex (0.2%).
The survey also found men wanted to spend their time surfing, golfing and fishing, while women wanted to spend their two hours reading.