Does the abuse of drugs and alcohol by men in a marital relationship increase the chance of divorce?

Kyle Daya
HHS4U1-01
Ms. D’Souza
June 13 2014
The abuse of drugs and alcohol can affect many people. More often than not, it creates a negative impact. An example of this is the effect it has on married couples and their families. The abuse of drugs and alcohol by men in a marital relationship increase the chance of divorce. The reason for this is because the drugs and alcohol can influence the husband to engage in violent activities. Secondly, the relationship between the husband and the wife will fade due to the abuse of illegal substances and alcohol. Lastly, the abuse of drugs and alcohol will influence the children to imitate the husband’s actions. This topic is significant to study because the rate of divorce has been rapidly increasing over the past years and drugs as well as alcohol abuse is one of the common causes of divorce and has become a big issue in today’s society. This is why the abuse of drugs and alcohol by men in a marital relationship increase the chance of divorce. A man who abuses drugs and alcohol is very capable of engaging in dangerous activities. Drugs and alcohol can sometimes influence men to become violent and act maliciously. The reason for men to use drugs or become an alcoholic is often depression. One who is in a state of depression and consumers drugs and alcohol can leave them into an even deeper state of depression. When a husband is in this state, one little thing such as a negative comment by a wife can tick the husband off and react violently in a physical or verbal manner. More often than not, if a husband acts violently especially if they do so physically, the wife will leave and file for a divorce. Not only will the wife leave, but will also most likely take the children as well, leaving the husband with nothing. It is proven that alcoholism and drug use lead to verbal and physical. “The study suggests ways alcohol use leads from physical and verbal abuse to emotional and sexual violence in marriage” (Chandran, 2010). This study obtained its data from 486 married men living with their wives. This proves that men who suffer from alcoholism not only tend to physically and verbally abuse their spouse, but also emotionally and sexually abuse them as well. The effects of alcohol and drugs can easily influence a man to do violent and malicious acts that will eventually lead to divorce. This is why the abuse of drugs and alcohol by men in a marital relationship increase the chance of divorce. Due to the abuse of drugs and alcohol by men, their relationship with their spouse will fade. A man’s relationship with their spouse will deteriorate as their addiction to drugs or alcohol continue to grow because they become married to the drug rather than their actual spouse. This leaves only little time for the husband to focus on the wife and spend time together. Not do men have their relationship with their spouse fade, but their relationship with their children and family will fade as well. This is because men who have an addiction to a drug or alcohol will focus on obtaining their addiction so they’ll always be able to consume it. “Drinking, in the opinions of both the alcoholic and his spouse, enhances husband’s dominance but decrease the display of affection” (Orford, 1978). Men who abuse alcohol and drugs result in being powerful and over-confident which forms the mentality of being affectionate as weak and unmanly. This results in less family time and less one on one time with the spouse. The sense of power gets into the husbands head making him think that there is no reason to be solicitous towards his wife. This is also accountable for the children and other family members. Therefore, not only will the husband’s relationship with his spouse fade, but so will his relationship with his children and other family members. This is why the deterioration of a man's relationship with his spouse due to the abuse of drugs and alcohol increase the chance of divorce. The abuse of drugs and alcohol by men influence children to imitate the father's actions.
Children who have a father who abuses drugs or alcohol tend to follow in his footsteps and partake in similar actions. For example, if a father becomes an alcoholic and the child witnesses him in the act of drinking, the odds are that when the child becomes an adult, he or she will become an alcoholic as well. This is also expected in the case of drug abuse. The child is also capable of imitating the father in his or her teenage years. In this specific occurrence, the wife will not approve of this behavior of both the father and the child. This will most likely lead to a divorce, in which the wife will also take the child so that he or she will change and grow up to live a lifestyle that is not similar to the father’s. Scientists from Dartmouth College did a research study on children aged two to six years old who participated in a game where he or she had to use dolls and props to prepare for a “night out” for adults. It was suggested that each child selected items from a mini grocery story that had 73 products in stock that included beer, wine, and cigarettes. “The study also found that children whose parents drank alcohol on a monthly basis were more likely to include alcohol among their imaginary purchases at the store” (Galta, 2014). This study shows that these two to six year olds are influenced by alcohol at such a young age that he or she added it in the grocery list for an adult night out. This means that by witnessing what his or her father does frequently, he or she is aware of alcohol and this will increase the chances of starting to drink at a young age. Thus, when alcohol and drugs are visible to children often will influence him or her to start drinking early.
In conclusion, alcohol and drugs can easily impact the behaviour of a person. Men who consume an excessive amount will put himself at risk as it will affect the relationships he has between his spouse and his family. The husband has a high risk of being abusive which can be a scare for the spouse. Also, the husband will be less affectionate to the wife. Along with that, men who abuse alcohol and drugs can influence his children. That is why women who are married to alcoholics have a high chance of divorce.

Works Cited
Berg, M. (2010). The Effects of Husband’s Alcohol Consumption on Married Women in Three Low-Income Areas of Greater Mumbai. Retrieved June 13, 2014, from the Academic OneFile database.

Galta, P. (2014, May 23). Parents’ Drug, Alcohol Use Has Huge Influence on Children. In TheFix.com. Retrieved June 13, 2014, from http://www.thefix.com/content/parents’-drug-alcohol-use-has-huge-influence-children

Littrell, J. (2014). Understanding and Treating Alcoholism: Volume I: An Empirically Based Clinician’s Handbook for the Treatment of Alcoholism. New York: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Inc. Publisher.