What is really considered a large gap?

[highyork10 23]

I am curious what is considered a large age gap in the Western world and those in Africa? I am just curious. Thanks

[Ryan H 3,829]

Moved from IR-1/CR-1 Progress Reports to Off Topic.

[Penguin_ie 5,996]

Depends on the respective ages, your culture, and, frankly, whether the man or woman is younger.

For example, in Europe a 30 year old woman with a 20 year old man would be seen as unusual/ odd; a 60 year old man with a 50 year old woman much less so.

[Darnell 8,479]

in some parts of Africa,

the local cultural norm is applied back at the IV Unit ,

so if a 28 year old man married a 54 year old woman,

that's against the cultural norm.

Usually, if it's an older USCitizen female, what's looked at is her child-bearing ability - as that too is part of the cultural norm.

So, if you and your loved one are 'outside of the cultural norm' then expect more scrutiny during the interview.

Usually.

[Kajikit 65]

Don't know about Africa... to me as an Australian, a 'large' age gap depends on the age of the people involved... if you're over 30, then it's more than 10 years. If you're in high school, more than 2 years is 'large' and may not even be legal (you really have to wonder what a 19 or 20yo sees in a 15yo girl!) If you're in your 20s, then 5 years is enough to make a big difference... (ie 20 + 25 is noticeable but unremarkable, 20 + 30 is large).

[NikLR 13,232]

I started dating my ex when I was 21 and he was 31. We were together for 9 years. My husband is 4 years younger than I am (we're almost at our 3rd anniversary of marriage.) My mom was married for 8 years to a man 14 years her junior starting in her late 30s, almost 40.

Cultural norms do play a part in this, and red flags are up to the couple to overcome. The best way to do so is together time.

Edited February 1, 2015 by NLR

[berber_wife 90]

From my experiences in both Southern and Northern Africa, much older man-younger woman relationships were not at all unusual. Especially in Southern Africa, high school and college aged girls would have their school fees paid for by men in their 40s, 50s and beyond. In Swaziland, where I lived, HIV infection peaked among women in their 20s and men in their middle age, leading people to conclude that there were many relationships with large age gaps.

The opposite (much older woman-younger man) was quite unusual and would lead people to assume the woman was a "sugar mama" even if they were from the same culture.

However, no one thought anything of a woman slightly older than her partner (within five years or so).