Divorce and Remarriage
Divorce and Remarriage
Divorce Rates
Trends in Divorce
The divorce rate has been rising since at least 1860.
The divorce rate is affected by social & economic conditions.
Increases after major wars and decreases during economic hard times.
Since 1981, the divorce rate in the U.S. has declined.
40% - 50% of all first marriages end in divorce
Still much higher than any of the other 19 major industrial nations
Factors Correlated with Divorce
Cohort
Much lower probability of divorce among pre-World War II cohort
Premarital Cohabitation
Couples that cohabit before marriage have higher divorce rate than those who do not cohabit before marriage
Younger, less traditional marital expectations, more approving of divorce; more likely to have stepchildren
Age at first marriage
Younger age at marriage correlated with higher probability for divorce
The Circumstance of the First Birth
Premarital pregnancies & births increase risk of divorce
The Presence of Children
Couples with children are less likely to divorce than childless couples
Likelihood of divorce decreases as family size increases (up to 4 children)
Presence of children born prior to marriage or stepchildren (in 2nd marriages) increases probability of divorce
Income
Inverse relationship between divorce & socioeconomic status (lower income, higher probability of divorce)
Wives’ earnings positively correlated with divorce (when women have significant independent income, likelihood of divorce rises)
Race
White and Hispanic marriages are the most stable; the divorce rate for African Americans is more than twice as high.
Some African Americans that are least educated, have unstable work history, & least income account for most of the difference
Interracial marriages have a higher divorce rate than intraracial marriages.
Religion
Denominational differences
Jews, Baptists, “born again” have higher divorce rate than national average
mainline Protestant denominations, Mormons are no different than national average
atheists, agnostics, Lutherans, Catholics have lower divorce rate than national average
Interreligious couples have higher divorce rates than couples with same religious beliefs
Intergenerational Transmission of Divorce
Adult children of divorce are more likely to experience divorce than adult children from intact families.
Predicting the Divorce Rate
Historical pattern: general increase over last 150 years with slight decline in the past 20 years. Baca Zinn, Eitzen, & Wells expect the divorce rate to remain at the current relatively high level or increase due to the following demographic, cultural, & structural factors.
Demographic factors
Increased proportion of young adults in the age structure of the population
Current bulge in the population of children of divorced parents
Longer life spans
Cultural Factors
Society is now relatively accepting of divorce.
Greater acceptance of cohabitation
Greater acceptance of interracial marriage
Structural Factors
The major reasons for predicting high rates of divorce in the future are structural.
Legal changes have made divorce easier to obtain & less expensive
Economic transformation has increased instability & insecurity for working & middle classes and increased wives’ employment & economic independence
Consequences of Divorce for Adults & Children
His Divorce
Divorce gives ex-husbands 2 major advantages (improved standard of living & increased personal freedom) and one major disadvantage (personal isolation)
Her Divorce
Divorce is much harsher for ex-wives. They also face personal isolation, but more importantly a significant decline in their standard of living.
Sources of income are often insufficient: alimony (awarded to only 15%), marital property, child support (awarded to about 2/3, but fathers are entirely or partially delinquent in 60% of those cases), welfare (benefits cut or eliminated through welfare reform of 1996), employment (often low pay, weak benefits, little advancement)
“Feminization of poverty “: women usually have custody of children but earn 77% of men’s income, often do not receive child support, & welfare benefits have been reduced or eliminated
Divorce as an opportunity for change is especially meaningful for many women because of traditional gender roles.
Adjustment After Divorce
Divorce is painful experience that can also be life transforming in a positive sense
Gradual recovery typically begins by end of 2nd year
6 years after divorce 80% of both men & women have moved on to build fulfilling lives
20 years after divorce 70 % of spouses made it through relatively unscathed
Enhanced (20%)
Competent loners (10%)
Good enoughs (40%)
Defeated (10%)
Seekers or libertines (20%)
Children and Divorce
About 65% of divorcing couples have children. (1 million children annually) This means 40% of American children will experience divorce by age 16. Most will remain with their mothers and effectively lose their fathers.
10 years after divorce, fathers will be entirely absent from lives of 2/3 of these children
The large majority of children of divorce do not experience severe or long term problems. After a period of initial disruption, 75-80% of children are able to cope with divorce & develop into well adjusted individuals.
Many adjustment problems are the result of inept parenting & destructive family relations that were present before the divorce.
However, children of divorce face greater risk of experiencing the negative effects of being raised by an overburdened single parent and of the sharp decline in resources when parents separate.
Academic success, conduct, psychological adjustment, self-concept, social competence
Characteristics of the Child (associated with adjustment problems)
Age: the younger the child at time of marital disruption, the more likely to have adjustment problems
Gender: boys more adversely affected than girls
Antisocial behavior in adolescence: primarily result of less parental control (rather than trauma of divorce)
Characteristics of the Family (associated with adjustment problems)
Size: the larger the family, the more stress ( & the more restrictive child-rearing techniques)
Socioeconomic status: lower income, downward mobility
Race: people of color disproportionately experience economic disadvantages
Contact with both parents: children do better in joint custody or at least if both parents live in same area
Maternal employment: greater risk of negative impact if mother goes to work for the first time after divorce
Remarriage After Divorce
Statistical Facts about Remarriage
About ½ of all marriages are a remarriage for at least one of the adults.
Currently, almost 90% of remarrying individuals are divorced
75% of divorced men % 60% divorced women remarry
Women are less likely to remarry than men if they are older, well educated, and have children.
Age
The older a woman is at time of divorce, the lower her chance of remarriage
Socioeconomic status
The higher a divorced man’s status (education & income), the more likely he is to remarry
The higher a divorced woman’s status (education & income), the less likely she is to remarry
Lower status women have fewer career options & were likely to have married younger & divorced younger
Race
African Americans & Latinos remarry at lower rates than Whites (and later than Whites)
Religion
Devout Catholics less likely to remarry & more likely to wait longer
The Uniqueness of Remarriage
Advantages of Remarriage
Disadvantages of Remarriage
Divorce is more prevalent & happens more quickly
Remarriage divorce rate higher than divorce rate for 1st marriage (60% of remarried couples divorce)
2nd divorces occur sooner (average 5 yrs,) than first divorces (average 7 yrs.)
Reasons why divorce is more prevalent & happens more quickly:
Less likely to stay in poor marriage out of fear of social pressure
Remarriages (esp. those with stepchildren) have stresses not found in first marriages
1. Higher levels of tension & disagreement regarding children & resources
Individuals may be less mature, responsible, supportive
2. More willing to terminate difficult relationship than to try to resolve problems
Marry for wrong reasons
Blended Families
About 45% of remarriages involve stepchildren
Special problem with family unity results in relatively high risk of divorce
Divorce rate is higher for stepfamilies than for remarried families without stepchildren
Types of Stepfamilies
Stepfather families: most common type (65%), less stress than other types, boys respond more favorably than girls
Stepmother families: step mothers have more difficult time integrating into stepfamilies than stepfathers because husbands expect them to assume primary caretaker role.
Complex stepfamilies: accounts for 7% of stepfamilies, greatest probability of divorce, more children > more likely to divorce
Stepfamilies with mutual child: about ½ of remarriages have child of their own (usually within 2 yrs.); 5% of remarried households have 3 sets of children; less likely to divorce in first ten yrs. (after 10 yrs. no difference)
Problems Endemic to Stepfamilies
Outsiders vs. insiders
Boundary disputes
Power issues
Conflicting loyalties
Rigid & unproductive triangles
Increased complexity of family relationships without language, customs, laws for how to solve special problems
Outcomes for Stepchildren
Parenting skills, emotional closeness of both biological & stepparent; gradual assumption of parenting role by stepparent
Age & gender of child at time of stepfamily formation
Remarriage among the Elderly
Significant increase due to longer life expectancy & aging of the “baby boom” generation
Unique problems include control of $, acceptance of adult children (daughters more likely than sons), differing gender role expectations
The Politics of Divorce
Conservative
Divorce contributes to social problems such as poverty, crime, substance abuse, and declining school performance.
Progressive
Although divorce is temporarily stressful, it represents a second chance for happiness for adults and an escape from a dysfunctional home environment for children.
Reality
Divorce benefits some individuals, leads others to experience temporary decreases in well-being that improve over time, and forces others on a downward spiral from which they might never fully recover.
The fact of the matter is that most kids from divorced families do manage to overcome their problems and do have good lives.
Is Marriage a Failed Institution?
The relatively high divorce rate does not mean that marriage is a failed institution.
The right to divorce is deeply ingrained in American culture because so is the ideal of a mutually fulfilling marriage.
Most people want to marry.
Half of all marriages do not end in divorce.
The vast majority of those who divorce choose to remarry.
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