The Effects Of Gray Divorce On The United States

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.

in divorce. There is a lot of stress on all the people involved. The man has

As generations pass by, divorce is becoming more of a social norm than a problem between two individuals. Divorce once was a private household issue but it became widespread only a couple of decades ago. According to the statistics, in the 1950s only 3% of families got divorced and in the 1960s it was already 10%. In the 1980s, 33% of families opted for divorce due to various environmental factors. Recent studies in Canada today, show that the rate of divorce is changing to an extent such that 4 in 10 marriages end in separation. Divorce is a sensitive concept which lies beyond two individuals simply falling out of love as is both the cause and an effect. The many factors that contribute to divorce are extramarital affairs, financial struggles, and the lack of communication.

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.

These includes changes in social levels over time, death rates, economic conditions and laws –the no-fault divorce laws, the reduction in fertility and the legalization of abortion increased the divorce rates in the 1980s. However, scholars believe that the single most important social change which made divorce possible was the increase in the employment of women and the economic independence that employment provided. For nearly all decades, the lifetime probability of divorce for women of all ages has been increasing. For women born in 1920, the likelihood of divorce by age 55 was 27 percent. This same level of divorce was reached at a much younger age (age 30) for women born in 1950. At least 40 percent of young adult women are likely to divorce. 16 percent are likely to divorce twice if current divorce rates continue. In Document 1, in the 1990s and 2000s, divorce rates appear to decline slightly.

Divorce is such a personal and common thing in America. There are so many couples who go through the act of divorce every day. According to Kanewicher and Harris (2014), forty to fifty percent of couples will end in divorce within the first few years of marriage. Divorce is the legal dissolution of a marriage by a court or other competent body. There are many factors that may lead couples into divorce. Some of those factors are, marrying too young, low education levels and overall just lack of preparation (Kanewischer, 2015). Although divorce is common now, it was not like this back in the late 1900’s. Divorce was not allowed and most of the time people did not want to get divorce because of all the time and effort they put into their marriage.

Divorce is a rising social issue in the United States of America, but it is not a new concept. Divorce has been a social issue since at least 1867 when for every 35.9 marriages, one couple were to get a divorce (Huth, 1947). Although divorce is not a new concept, it has become more social acceptance which is raising the divorce rate over the years. Another controversial topic in divorce is when the two people divorcing have a child or children together. Approximately 150,000-200,000 children in the United States of America are affected by divorce yearly (Huth, 1947).

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

As a whole, the divorce rate has declined in the last couple decades, but the rate for older divorces has increased. In fact, the rate more than doubled for people over the age of fifty between 1990 and 2010. The increasing number of Baby Boomers who are suddenly facing divorce after years of marriage has led to the coining of a new phrase, “gray divorce,” that references this phenomenon of our time. If you are seeking divorce, remember that divorce after age 50 comes with different complications than a divorce in your early 30’s or 40’s.

Amato, Paul R. "The Consequences of Divorce for Adults and Children." Journal of Marriage and the Family 62.4 (2000): 1269-87.

Divorce is difficult. It can be even more difficult later in life, particularly when approaching old age. The number of these so-called grey divorces has skyrocketed in recent years. In addition to the more challenging emotional aspects of divorcing later in life, there are financial and medical considerations to make. Not only will there be retirement accounts to consider, but any financial mistake that a person makes while going through a grey divorce can be more challenging to recover from. Whether you were the primary earner in the marriage or not, the most important step is to speak with a qualified attorney.

According to McDonald & Robb (2004), older divorced and separated women have the highest poverty rates among all older unmarried women. After divorce or separation a woman’s economic well-being declines an average of 23%-73%. Men’s income, on the other hand, tends to increase following a divorce. Typically, older women will have left marriages with few assets and limited labour market experience (Davies & Denton, 2002). Without the benefit of a husband’s income in retirement and little to

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), in 2011 there were 2,118,000 marriages in the United States and almost half as many divorces (2013). The CDC also reports that only half of all first marriages will reach their twentieth anniversary. Divorce is a topic everyone is familiar with and it has almost become a normal part of life. While it is assumed that more divorces occur now than in the previous generation, the CDC actually reports that divorce rates have dropped over the past twenty to thirty years, though this could be due to the increase in individuals who live together without ever getting married or those who simply separate and cannot afford to become legally divorced. However, it has become a more

Harvey and Fine say, in their book on the effects of divorce on children, that divorce has increased at a “contagious rate since 1980.” They argue that divorce in America is a “cultural burden of vast proportions,” and insist that the “pain extends beyond the persons who dissolve their relationships to children, parents, and dear friends.” Harvey and Fine

Divorce is a plague that is destroying numerous families across the United States of America. Sadly, when husbands and wives divorce, the children are often caught directly in the middle. Throughout the years divorce has been becoming more and more common. In the 1920's it was a rare find to know a person whom had been divorced, today it is a rarity not to know of one who has been, or will be divorced. Divorce has numerous effects on the structures of families, and many devastating effects on the children that must experience it, although sometimes necessary, divorce radically changes the lives of adolescents and adults alike.