Long gone are the days of marital necessity, and in are the days of realizing love can exist without long-term commitment where independence and freedom are what really make a person happy. RELATED: 18 Comforting Signs He’s The One But if you really want relationship advice, there’s one study that may have you scratching your head. A study by EliteSingles has found that what was once considered “normal” for relationships is no longer the case. We, as a society, are evolving, and the relationship trends that are the result of this evolution are pretty awesome. Austrian futurologist, Professor Reinhold Popp, worked with EliteSingles to see just where we’re headed with our relationships and what we can expect to see more of in the future. 

1. People will start being pickier

Settling is totally a thing for generations past. The future will be all about people having a checklist of deal-breakers who aren’t afraid to adhere to them. This will also mean that the actual relationship quality will matter even more, too. As it should be now, but people are going to step it up on that end.

2. Independence is paramount

People no longer want to live for someone else, but live for themselves instead, and in doing so, they’re putting themselves first and foremost. Forty percent of those surveyed preferred to stave off cohabitating as a means to retain their independence, while “realizing individual goals will continue to increase.” RELATED: 10 Essential Things All Couples Need To Do To Build A Strong Relationship

3. Couples therapy will become the norm

According to EliteSingles psychologist Dr. Wiebke Neberich, couples are now more willing than ever to recognize issues as their relationship complexities grow and deal with them, instead of just bailing. Finally, a world where therapy might lose its awful stigma! What a dream!

4. Living separately is more desirable

Living together? Forget it. You have that awesome one-bedroom of yours for a reason, so hang on to it as long as you can. In fact, 60 percent were all about living alone, because, well… independence, freedom, and not sharing a bed, obviously.

5. Marriage will be about “experience” instead of “support”

Once an accepted means of “survival,” marriage is no longer steeped in being a necessary thing. Those who marry will do it for reasons other than security and tradition, like for the experience of it. RELATED: Couples Who Actually Want To Stay Married Do These 5 Things Every Single Day

6. Serial monogamy will be all the rage

Although the survey found that people still believe in “the one,” and 85 percent wanted a life partner, only 45 percent believe in having just one life partner was a possibility. As Dr. Neberich explains, “The future is one in which people have a number of different, shorter-term partners.” This was especially true for women over 45, while those under 35 were still a bit more apt to hang on to the idea of one partner. In this case, although not scientifically proven, romantic comedies are clearly to blame.

7. Being single is no longer a cliché for certain age groups

Once just the stuff of people in their 20s and 30s, the future will be chock-full of single of “all age groups, as people become single at several points in their life,” because, you know, all that serial monogamy is going on. Maybe double dates with mom?

8. Online dating is the primary source of dating

As we hide further and further behind the comfortable walls that technology has built and we have less time to make actual in-person contact, online dating will not only become more and more the norm but will be regarded as a “traditional” way to meet people. I wonder if this means the creeps on OkCupid will quit being creepy? Let’s hope so, for the sake of womankind. RELATED: 15 Dating Tips I Wish I’d Followed While I Was Single