Divorce

Question 1

What does trend mean?

Answer 1

A change over time

Question 2

What trends have occurred in UK divorce over the last 100 years?

Answer 2

A dramatic ~5x increase from 1961-1996
A decrease since 1996
40% of marriages will end in divorce
65% of divorce petitions (applications) come from women

Question 3

What factors seem to increase the chance of divorce?

Answer 3

Marrying young
Having a child before marriage
Cohabiting before marriage
Where one or both partners have been married before

Question 4

What are the 5 grounds for divorce?

Answer 4

Adultery/cheating
Unreasonable behaviour
Desertion
Two year separation - if both partners agree
Five year separation - if partners do not agree

Question 5

What are the 7 factors which contribute towards increasing divorce rates?

Answer 5

Changes in the law
Declining stigma
Secularisation
Rising expectations of marriage
Changes in the position of women
Feminist arguments
Modernity and individualisation

Question 6

How have changes in the law contributed to increasing divorce rates?

Answer 6

By making it easier to get a divorce

Question 7

List 3 legal changes that have made divorce easier to attain

Answer 7

1969 - Divorce Reform Act
1984 - Legislation reducing the time needed for divorce applications
2007 - Appeal Court ruling on financial assets

Question 8

What did the Divorce Reform Act 1969 do?

Answer 8

Introduced 2-year and 5-year separation as grounds for divorce

Question 9

The 1984 legislation reduced the time needed before applying for a divorce from __ to __ years

Answer 9

From 3 years to 1 year

Question 10

What did the 2007 Appeal Court ruling do?

Answer 10

It made a 50/50 split of financial assets the standard for divorce

Question 11

How can we evaluate changes in the law as a reason for increasing divorce rates?

Answer 11

This explains how people get a divorce, but doesn’t help explain why they want to get a divorce

Question 12

How has declining stigma contributed to increasing divorce rates?

Answer 12

Divorce has become more socially acceptable, meaning more couples are willing to resort to divorce to solve marital problems

Mitchell and Goody (1997) did a study which found this change in attitude

Question 13

How can we evaluate declining stigma as a reason for increasing divorce rates?

Answer 13

Most people still live in a family; most children are brought up by couples; most couples marry and many divorcees remarry. This suggests that marriage is still important to people, even though divorce is more acceptable

Question 14

What does secularisation mean?

Answer 14

This refers to the decline in the influence of religion in society

Question 15

How has secularisation contributed to increasing divorce rates?

Answer 15

Traditionally, religions are against divorce. As religion is having less influence in people’s lives they are more willing to get divorced. Many churches have also softened their views on divorce

Question 16

How can we evaluate secularisation as a reason for increasing divorce rates?

Answer 16

Most first-time marriages still happen in a religious context, suggesting that religion is still important to people for their weddings

Question 17

How has rising expectations of marriage contributed to increasing divorce rates?

Answer 17

In the past, marriage was expected to provide very little, such as financial security. Today, people want much more from their marriage, such as happiness, fulfilment, fun, romance. This means people are more likely to be unsatisfied with their marriage and want to leave

Fletcher (1966) makes this argument

Question 18

How can we evaluate rising expectations of marriage as a reason for increasing divorce rates?

Answer 18

Most adults get married, and most divorcees get remarried, suggesting that people still want to get married despite higher expectations

Question 19

How have changes in the position of women contributed to increasing divorce rates?

Answer 19

Women are now able to reach financial security without relying on a husband, and most women have personal goals outside of marriage (such as career or achievement goals), meaning they are more willing and able to leave poor marriages

Question 20

How can we evaluate changes in the position of women as a reason for increasing divorce rates?

Answer 20

Feminists argue that women becoming wage earners has created a new source of conflict between husbands and wives, and increased the occurrence of the triple shift for women. They argue this is what leads to more divorces, not an increase in women’s independence

Question 21

How have feminist arguments contributed to increasing divorce rates?

Answer 21

Although there has been positive change in the public sphere, changes in the private sphere are slower. Marriage remains patriarchal, and many women suffer from the dual burden (paid work and housework) or triple shift (paid work, housework, and emotional work). Therefore more women are dissatisfied with their marriages

Question 22

How can we evaluate feminist arguments as a reason for increasing divorce rates?

Answer 22

Cooke and Gash (2010) found no evidence that working women are more likely to divorce, suggesting that dual burden or triple shift may not encourage women to divorce

Question 23

How have modernity and individualisation contributed to increasing divorce rates?

Answer 23

Beck (1992) & Giddens (1992) argue that modern society creates a breakdown in traditional norms (such as duty to a partner), and encourages people to pursue their own self-interest (individualisation thesis). Therefore, people are more willing to leave marriages that aren’t fulfilling their needs

Question 24

How can we evaluate modernity and individualisation as a reason for increasing divorce rates?

Answer 24

Functionalists would argue that men and women have natural, biological gender roles (instrumental vs expressive role) and have a duty to perform these roles

Question 25

What does modernity mean?

Answer 25

The time period since the industrial revolution (~1800 onwards)

Question 26

What does individualisation mean?

Answer 26

The process of people becoming more concerned with living their lives for themselves/achieving their own personal goals