Washington, Sept 26: According to a new study, chances of remarriage or cohabiting decrease after a separation or divorce.

And, what further reduces the chances of moving on and finding a new love is children from a previous marriage or relationship.

The study, by Dutch researcher Anne-Rigt Poortman, has revealed that the prospects of having a relationship were slimmer for women as compared to men. A possible explanation for such kind of behaviour could be that past experiences make people cautious following a divorce.

Poortman studied the consequences of previous relationships on a person's future relationships and reported different ideology concerning different choices.

She explained that the chances of a new relationship were particularly small if people were married before or had children from a previous relationship.

However while separated or divorced people still wanted a partner, they had a stronger preference for less committed types of relationships such as a living-apart-together relationship or unmarried cohabitation.

Divorcees would rather not live with a partner, whereas people who have only cohabited in the past still want that, the study found.

Poortman noted that when it comes to choosing a partner, divorced men and women prefer having a divorced partner. The case is again the same with divorced older people.

Women and older people without any experience of divorce experiences more frequently have a divorced partner, whereas for divorcees both men and younger people more frequently have a new partner without a relationship history.

Poortman also reported that people who have experienced a divorce are more likely to get divorced again.

For ex-cohabitants, the chances of breaking the relationship are just as high as for people who cohabit for the first time. (With inputs from ANI)