Divorce : The Divorce Rate

Throughout time, practices that were once never used, become more common. In the 1600s divorce was a forbidden practice or a last resort. Since then, laws have changed, and so hasn’t the stigma related with divorce. The guilt and fault that divorce once carried has vanished. According to the book Should I Keep Trying to Work it out, “In the United States, researchers estimate that 40%–50% of all first marriages will end in divorce or permanent separation. The risk of divorce is even higher for second marriages, about 60%.” (Hawkins 42). As it became more common for couples in America to separate, divorce gradually became a normal part of so many lives. Why are so many couples separating now? Through research on EBSCO, and other findings, I will attempt to explain this question that so many people ask in today’s world. The divorce rate in America is drastically increasing over time due to new laws, certain generations, and relationship issues.

Throughout history, divorce has remained a controversial topic. Perceptions of divorce have drastically changed essentially because the value of marriage has changed. Marriage was once seen as a practical necessity and an irrevocable commitment. The view of marriage caused divorce to be perceived as a stigma. Divorce in earlier generations was not granted by the court system unless there were extenuating circumstances (Evolution). For example, if the woman in the marriage was unable to conceive children the divorce would be granted to the man. This remained the standard practice until the 1970’s with the introduction of “no-fault divorces” (Croteau).

There is a staggeringly large amount of divorces in the United States (US). In total, the US had a recorded total of 2,140,272 marriages in the year 2014 alone, and of those marriages, 813,862 ended up in divorce or annulment (Center for Disease Control). This means that as recently as 2014, there was a divorce rate of approximately 40%. This supports the statistics that the divorce rate for the US has stayed within 40-50% since the 1970’s (Austin Institute, 2014). While the numbers themselves are important, it is also important that the causes for the high divorce rate be explored, so that it can be known what pitfalls to avoid when participating in such an important union as marriage. There are many causes of divorce in the US such as conflicting gender roles, socioeconomic status, religious conflicts, physical abuse, emotional abuse, alcohol addictions, and many more (Amato & Previti, 2003). This paper will look at many of these reasons, but it will also focus on the differing reasons reported by men and women.

As human civilization advances, the more tolerant society has become to behaviors that used to be regarded as appalling and immoral. One of these behaviors is becoming divorced. According to a recent guidebook for couples who are in the midst of a divorce or considering divorce, 70% of Americans believe that divorce is a morally acceptable choice (Hawkins, 2009). This new understanding of divorce has played a significant role in the choice that many Americans have made to separate from their spouse. According to researchers in the United States 40%-50% of first marriages and 60% of second marriages will end in separation (Hawkins, 2009). Married couples in the United States are finding it difficult to remain committed to their spouses and it 's resulting in many failed relationships. Unless American citizens have a major epiphany about the foundation of marriage, the high divorce rate in the United States will continue and could escalate even higher in the next few decades for a variety of reasons including religion, finances, and adultery.

The effects of divorce on the American culture are immense. Social scientists have been studying these effects for many years now. The studies are continuing to confirm that the climbing rate of divorce in the American culture is hurting the society and also frequently devastating the lives of many American children. More often than not people decide to get a divorce before they really think about the effects of divorce. People usually decide to get a divorce based on emotion rather than logic which can hinder their long term happiness. There are many areas in which divorce has a negative effect in the life of a child or an adult. Many of these effects also directly correlate to the effect on a society. However, there is hope. Although

Not too long ago, “divorce” was forbidden, unaccepted, unheard of, difficult to get, and considered as an act of sin among married couples. Many changes in the last fifty-years have affected marriage and divorce rates. The rise of the women’s liberation movement, the advent of the sexual revolution, and an increase in women’s labor force participation altered perceptions of gender roles. As of today, in “modern society” divorce has become more acceptable. The guilt and shame of the old divorce laws are gone. More couples are separated and divorcing is becoming part of the norm. (MLR)

Long before 1970, divorce was relatively uncommon. Getting a divorce was very tedious. At that time, you could only get a divorce under grounds of adultery, abandonment, cruelty, intoxication or any other serious reason to no longer be together. What has changed and why has the divorce rate raised to 50% of all marriages? Divorce rates has raised to 50% because of society changes, view of monogamy, and young marriages.

The effects of divorce on the American culture are immense. Social scientists have been studying these effects for many years now. The studies are continuing to confirm that the climbing rate of divorce in the American culture is hurting the society and also frequently devastating the lives of many American children. There are many areas in which divorce has a negative effect in the life of a child or an adult. Many of these effects also directly correlate to the effect on a society. However, there is hope. Although divorce is being more widely recognized as being harmful to both our culture and to the individuals involved, there are many ways that we as a culture can seek to reduce this harm and attain our goal of being a culture

With a major upsurge of divorces beginning in the forties, experts argue that divorce was and still remains a social problem. From a religious perspective, historically theologians and moralists have disapproved of divorce and decreed divorce as a dysfunctional and disruptive of the stability of society , the family and the welfare of children and the well being of adults. In addition, sociologists imply that divorce is undesirable and promote familial disorganization. The increase of divorce has threatened the normativity of intact families, thus divorce defies the desirable family structure. Psychologists, including children psychologists and social workers emphasized several deleterious consequences of divorce in terms of the

The unionship held between two people commemorated into the term marriage involves a couple madly in love, willing to put their status of love into legal terms. However what happens when all the love festivities wither away and one or both parties involved in this union decide that they aren’t destined to be together forever ? In America alone, there is one divorce approximately every 36 seconds, equating to 2,400 divorces a day, and a total of approximately 876,000 a year. Most people take their time on deciding whether to marry the partner they are with, however divorce rates are still at an all time high in America. In today’s society, divorce is considered a normal thing that couples go through, instead of working out issues, as divorce seems like an easier and more convenient alternative. The general reasons as to a divorce are infidelity, financial instability, and a lack of communication amongst partners.

Many families in the United States have or know someone who has been through a divorce. The reason for this is because divorce has almost become a normal occurrence in our society. According to the textbook Marriages and Families, Diversity and Change Seventh Edition “1 million married couples in the United States divorce each year.” (M. Schwartz, B. Scott, 2012, p. 390) In early America divorce was almost non-existent, that is not the case in our recent day and age. Unfortunately, in today’s society there are many factors that have contributed destroying marriages, one example being social media. Sadly, the couple divorcing aren’t the only ones affected by divorce. “A recent student of 13 European countries, Canada, and the United States found that the divorce risk of children of divorced parents is on average about twice that of children of non-divorced parents.” (Hong, Galher, and Bernhardt. 2006) Even though divorce rates have continuously been rising we do have many resources available to help save marriages instead of just giving up on the entire sanctity that marriage is supposed to represent.

The sanctity of marriage has seemed to have disappeared with the arrival of the 21st century. Though marriage rates have always fluctuated in the past, current events have caused divorce rates to increase. According to recent statistics made by the census bureau, the divorce rate in America is roughly 50 percent. There are a myriad of speculations as to why more people are not staying together. One reason is that people are getting married for the wrong reasons, such as unplanned pregnancies. Another reason is that women have become more independent so that they are not forced in to being in a marriage where they are not happy. Last, lenient divorce laws make it much easier for many couples to get divorced. Combined, these three

In the last 25 years, divorce has become a major issue in American society. Since the turn of the century, the divorce rate has held steady between 4.0-3.2 divorces per 1000 people per year (National Vital Statistics System, 2015). With this rising divorce rate, more children are living between parents, or in single family homes, and many of these children have been exposed to altercations between parents, as well as rough custody battles and divorce settlements. Traumatic experiences like these are highly likely to stick with children of divorce throughout their life, especially if the child is older at the time of the divorce.

“Divorce isn’t such a tragedy. A tragedy’s staying in an unhappy marriage, teaching your children the wrong things about love. Nobody ever died of divorce,” states Jennifer Weiner, a New York Times Bestselling author, in her novel, Fly Away Home. Although Weiner has a point in voicing that a dispirited and forlorn relationship can corrupt the innocent mentality of children, it is vital that she also considers the darker, more sinister side of divorce. To put the term ‘divorce’ simply, it “is what husband and wife do together when they no longer wish to do anything together“ (Yantiss). If for any reason one may feel as if their current marriage isn’t right, isn’t working out, for them, one way to solve that problem would be divorce: the

The bar chart illustrate the information about the numbers of marriages and divorces from 1970 to 2000 in America, and show the percentage of marital status of adult Americans in 1970 and 2000.