...major change that has occurred in the Western family is an increased incidence in divorce. Whereas in the past, divorce was a relatively rare occurrence, in recent times it has become quite commonplace. This change is borne out clearly in census figures. For example thirty years ago in Australia, only one marriage in ten ended in divorce; nowadays the figure is more than one in three (Australian Bureau of Statistics, 1996: p.45). A consequence of this change has been a substantial increase in the number of single parent families and the attendant problems that this brings (Kilmartin, 1997). An important issue for sociologists, and indeed for all of society, is why these changes in marital patterns have occurred. In this essay I will seek to critically examine a number of sociological explanations for the 'divorce phenomenon' and also consider the social policy implications that each explanation carries with it. It will be argued that the best explanations are to be found within a broad socio-economic framework....
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...Examine the reasons for the changing patterns of marriage and divorce over the last 50 years Sude Dramali Families in Britain are continually changing over time, but over the last 50 years there have been major changes. There has been a huge increase in the numbers of divorce, and a decrease in the number of marriages. The divorce rate has especially increased, as now one-half of new marriages today are likely to end in divorce. New forms of the family are rising, such as lone parents, same sex marriages and cohabitation. These changes mean that families and households today bear little resemblance to those of fifty years ago, and the "typical family" no longer seems to exists. One of the reasons for the changing pattern of marriage and divorce is the changing role of women. Feminists might argue that women's expectations of life and the quality of their relationship have risen during the last century, and so are less likely to accept a traditional housewife role. Around three quarters of divorce petitions are initiated by women, which would imply that more women are unhappy with they're marriages than men are. On top of this; the employment of married women has dramatically increased, and now it is the norm for married women with children to also be in employment. This change is reflected in TV shows and films, as the mother role is no longer portrayed as only being a housewife, but also as a working mother with her own career. Being employed increases women's financial...
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...Nadour Statistics of the United States data shows that 50% of marriages split. Since the 1960’s, marriage and divorce have been undergoing profound changes which have altered the meaning of marriage, the chances of its ending in divorce and the circumstances attached to marriage. These changes have made it easier for couples to obtain a divorce due to the changing laws and changing morals of society. The government needs to make changes to the Divorce Act as people more and more are getting divorced as it brings a negative impact to those who wish to marry in the future. Over the years divorce has been easier to obtain. Divorce was extremely uncommon in the United States until after WWII. Until that time, USA had one of the lowest divorce rates in the Western World; this is because opinions by social and religious leaders condemned divorce as a threat to the family. The strength of this opinion prevented the easing of United State’s divorce laws. Consequently, access to divorce in the United States was extremely limited until 1968. Until this time, getting married usually meant forever. Divorce was illegal unless one mate was proven adulterous. When divorce did happen, one party was believed legally innocent, the other party guilty, and that judgment affected the financial settlement. Both partners’ social status was sufficiently hurt, most people tried hard to avoid divorce if they could. By 1968, however, the sexual “revolution” was in full swing. Couples were rebelling against...
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...It has been proven that divorce rates have increased rapidly in the least 50 years or so. This can be seen from the actual number of divorces each year and from the increase in the divorce rate. Firstly, one reason for changes in the divorce rate since 1969 is the change in how divorce is perceived by society. For example, 50 years ago divorce was considered to be shameful and dishonourable as it was considered good for society if couples got married and stayed together. However, since then, although divorce is still a personal misfortune, it is no longer seen as a disgrace. The reason for this change is the shift in social norms and values and also the reinforcements of new laws and changes to existing ones. The major change has been the introduction of the Divorce Reform Act in 1969. This particular law allowed the termination of marriage and made the whole process become a lot easier. It also targeted two main areas of the old law that were abolished: the irretrievable breakdown of marriage and the evidence of adultery, separation and poor behaviour having to be provided. Another reason for the change in divorce is the changing opinions of women in society. This is because during the 1950s, women were expected to get married soon after they left school and start a family. If they didn’t meet these expectations, they would have been considered to have failed within society. Sue Sharpe conducted a study in both the 1970s and the 1990s to find what teenage girls aspirations...
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...The Impact of Divorce on Children A Review how Divorce Impact Children under 18 Liberty University Abstract The purpose of this research paper is to understand the impact of divorce on children under 18. Each year over million Americans children experience the divorce of their parents, Divorces causes irreparable damage to all involved, but most specifically to the children. A major impact of divorce is on the children and parent relationship. The pain experienced by children is stressful as they see their family brake-down and disconnect as a hole. It take them to a dark place of emotionally and psychologically, thwarting upon the child well – being. Divorce negative impacts individuals and society in numerous other ways, such as religious practice, financial struggles, social skills and life styles, as well as children health and well-being. It is very important for parents to not let their children see any conflicts between them, and be able to co-parent with a line of communication that would be beneficial to the child development and growth. As a parent we all want the best for our children. When adults get married pray to keep their marriage together, until death do them apart. When there are kids involved most parents do their best to keep their family together for the sake of the children. Sadly to say it’s not always that simple, and the children end up suffering from their parents’ divorce. Divorcing parents are usually very concerned about the welfare...
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...GENDER RELATIONS AND DIVORCE AMONG THE ELITES A CASE STUDY OF GULU MUNICIPALITY BY HENRY EGYEYU ABSTRACT This study is aimed at establishing the relationship between Gender relations and Divorce such that possible approaches are sought to mitigate them. The study set out to assess the sex-differentiated impact of divorce, which are normally part of family life. These include changes in residences by children to accommodate changes in their relationships with their parents, changes in parental employment, remarriage, and stepfamily formation still; most children suffer from declining father. The study found that such changes affect individuals within households differently. Some lose while others gain. Women, however, have been singled out as the most affected. Changes in marriage and divorce laws and policies have further affected individual household members in different ways that is, children live in many different family forms, but the most common pattern is that they live with their mothers and have less contact with their fathers. As a result, a common alteration that children are forced to make is an adjustment to life without their father at home. Most children share time between the mother's household and the father's household, and families are creative in finding ways for children to maintain meaningful relationships with both parents involvement after divorce The conflicts over ownership of...
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...in the dictionary, a divorce is the legal dissolution of a marriage by a court or other competent body . When a couple divorce, it is because they are having problems on their marriage and it is not a healthy relationship anymore. There are many causes for spouses to have problems such as economic issues, infidelity, arguing, violence, etc. Divorce can have different emotional and psychological effects on adults and children. The United States is the country with the highest rate of divorce in the world. Rate of Divorce in the United States Research indicates that United States is the country with the highest rate of divorce been over 50%. In addition, around 67% of second marriages get divorce as well. Not only divorce is prevalent in USA, but also it is prevalent on woman. Women are more likely to initiate a divorce than man is, and if they have kids, women are more likely to have their custody. It has also been demonstrated that the overall divorce rate is declining, even when the percentage of middle adulthood divorce is increasing. The following graph demonstrates this tendency. Effects of Divorce on Adults...
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...child's development. ------------------------------------------------- ------------------------------------------------- Related Articles * Family Development Activities * Social Development and Family Planning * How Does Family Structure Impact Language Development? * The Effect of an Addictive Behavior on a Family * The Effect of Divorce on Early Childhood Development * The Effect of Language Development on Social Development The University of New Hampshire Cooperative Extension explains that the effects of a broken family on a child’s development depends on numerous factors, including her age when her parents separation, and on her personality and family relationships. Although infants and young children may experience few negative developmental effects, older children and teenagers may experience some problems in their social, emotional and educational functioning. Emotional After a divorce, children from pre-school through late adolescence can experience deficits in emotional development. Children of all ages may seem tearful or depressed, which is a state that can last several years after a child’s parents’ have separated, explains psychologist Lori Rappaport. Additionally, some older children may show very little emotional reaction to their parents’ divorce. Rappaport explains that this may not be developmentally beneficial. Some children who show little emotional response are actually bottling up their negative feelings. This emotional...
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...JESSICA THOMAS LIBERTY UNIVERSITY PSYC 231 ABSTRACT Children and Adolescents are believed to be resilient to most situations including divorce. Experts argue that when parents handle their divorce in an amicable way the effects on their children are minimal. Unfortunately this is not true, as a divorce not only affects the married couple but the entire family will now live a new life. In this paper I will attempt to refute the claim that an amicable divorce has a less traumatic effect on an adolescent’s development, behavior, social life/relationships, and academics. Key Words: Adolescent, Relationships, Divorce, Resilience, Development, Behavior INTRODUCTION It is estimated that forty percent of all marriages in the United States ended in divorce in 2011 (CDC, 2011). Of the forty percent, more than half of those divorces involved children and/or adolescents (Amato, 2000). Adolescence is a confusing time filled with body changes, the challenge of no longer being a child, but not quite ready for adulthood, and the need to establish their own identity. When a teenager’s parents make the decision to divorce it complicates the teenagers life and interrupts the stability that they need during adolescence. DEVELOPMENTAL EFFECTS The adolescent years are a time when children become teenagers on their journey towards eventually becoming adults. A major developmental shift happens between the ages of twelve and eighteen as teenagers begin to develop their identity. These adolescents...
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...family life of fifty years ago as the norm, those types of relationships are a thing of the distant past. In any marriage or relationship there are gender roles, and social norms define them as a male and female role and no matter what type of relationship or marriage it is you are able to find these roles. The male role is still the one that is expected to be the bread winner, do household repairs and take care of yard work. While the female role is still expected to cook, clean and care of the children whether they have a job or not. Men who are the parent that takes on the female role in a household while their wife takes on the role of bread winner, are thought to be lesser of a man because he is allowing the wife to do the work. This is the issue of social norms people can feel as though they have failed if they are unable to accomplish them. If you look at relationships that do not fall into nuclear families, you can see there is still defined roles. Step-parenting, different styles of cohabiting, adoption, same-sex unions have someone that completes the role. If people in relationships would focus on what works with them instead of concerning themselves with the biased social norms then things could be much easier (Brinkerhoff, Weitz, & Ortega, 2011). In America about half of all marriages end in divorce leaving a quarter of American families as...
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...Divorce and Children According to the study that was done in 2004 "In the United States, between 43% and 50% of first marriages end in divorce"(U.S Census Bureau qtd inLansford 140). One can assume that many children will experience some affects caused by divorce. There is evidence to support that children would be better off if the parents stayed married and there is equal supporting evidence that it would be better off if they divorced. A survey done in 2009 by 1000 teenagers "When asked what the teens wanted their parents to know they said that divorce "hurts," "sucks" and that they "don’t want to be blamed for it" or caught in the middle"(GordonPoll Youth Survey qtd inJolivet 175). There are three main areas that impact children's experience with divorce such as behavioral, psychological, and social issues. Children are effected by divorce in many ways which cause their behavior to not be normal. When children go through a traumatic event, such as losing a parent to divorce, they want to act out because they are hurt, and do not know what to do with their emotions. An article written by Ahron Constance states "…..divorce prevents certain risks, is an emotionally stressful and complex transition for families, and continues to affect children into adulthood" (55). Divorce is a hard thing for children to learn how to cope with. Children of different ages rebel in different ways; they do this because at different age levels they cannot comprehend certain things and are...
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...Examine the reasons for the divorce rate in Britain today. Divorce is the legal separation of married couples. A divorce rate is the number of divorces occurring among the population of a given area during a given year. Since the 1960s there has been a great increase in the number of divorces in the United Kingdom. In Britain today, the numbers have fallen somewhat, but still stood at around 157,000 in 2001. This rate shows that about 40% of marriages will end in divorce. Some couples are more likely to divorce than others – couples such as those who marry young, those who have a child or cohabit before marriage and those where one or both partners have been married before. Functionalists are interested in divorce because they argue that a high divorce rate does not necessarily prove that marriage as a social institution is under threat. One reason for the changing rates in divorce is due to changes in the law. In previous centuries divorce was very hard to obtain, especially for women. Gradually changes in the law have made it easier for divorce to be achieved. Law changes such as equalising rights for men and women in the area of divorce, widening the grounds for divorce and making divorce cheaper are all factors which are changing the rates of divorce. Although divorce legally ends a marriage, couples find other solutions to solve the problem of an unhappy marriage; one partner leaving the other although they remain legally married (desertion); legal separation of the financial...
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...Marriage & Family Changes: American Society DeVry University April 11th, 2014 Spring 2014, Session II Changes to Marriage & Family: American Society The American society has had very dramatic changes in the ways that certain aspects of our modern culture are shifting the traditional American family. These changes bring a new different perspective to the rise in divorce rates. Cohabiting relationships rather than traditional marriages has brought a new way of viewing relationships. Blended families of both gay and heterosexual design surface new issues. And children being born out of wedlock and its normalcy in today’s society. High Rise in Divorces The American society has been demonstrating signs and symptoms of change with the rise of technology. Marriage has long been recognized as a fundamental social institution but with the rise of modern economies and the associated individualism, many functions once confined to marriage now take place outside of it (Musick & Bumpas, 2012). Divorces has several factors that contribute to the high incidence in our modern times. Many parents use the media as surrogate parents, allowing the internet and social media to be the child’s main support, instead of dedicating personal quality time to their children. In change, these children have grown up in the last decade young marriages tend to dedicate more time to their social platforms rather than spending one on one time with their spouses. Social media also affects the...
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...Examine the reasons for the changes in the patterns of marriage In the last 30 years, the British society has experienced many changes affecting the family. There have been changes in attitudes to and expectations of family life, as well as official changes such as government legislation. Society has been affected by feminism, which has led to increased awareness of women’s rights and freedoms, as well as postmodernism and secularisation. The changes resulting have affected marriage rates, which are decreasing, and more people are now marrying later in life and more than once. More people are choosing to cohabit, either before or instead of marrying, and this is becoming increasingly common in young couples. Divorce rates have also increased in the last 30 years, following changes in legislation and attitudes. As society’s view of a ‘conventional family’ has changed over the last 30 years, the acceptable norms have widened. In the past, an unmarried woman would be looked down on, as it was expected that women would marry and invest their time in raising a family. If they didn’t, it could be presumed that could they couldn’t find a willing partner, or that there was something wrong with them. Although 95.1% of British women still marry before they are 49, it has become more acceptable to choose not to get married, and rather than being looked down on, single women are more likely to be viewed as strong, focussed, and independent. This means there is less pressure on...
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...Department of Justice Ministère de la Justice Canada Canada WORKING DOCUMENT THE EFFECTS OF DIVORCE ON CHILDREN A Selected Literature Review Research and Statistics Division October 1997 WD1998-2e UNEDITED Research and Statistics Division/ Division de la recherche et de la statistique Policy Sector/ Secteur des politiques WORKING DOCUMENT THE EFFECTS OF DIVORCE ON CHILDREN A Selected Literature Review Research and Statistics Division October 1997 WD1998-2e UNEDITED The views expressed in this paper do not necessarily reflect those of the Department of Justice Canada. iii TABLE OF CONTENTS 1.0 INTRODUCTION ....................................................................................... 1 2.0 LIMITATIONS OF THE RESEARCH .............................................................. 3 3.0 FACTORS AFFECTING CHILDREN’S POSTDIVORCE ADJUSTMENT ................. 6 3.1 Child Characteristics............................................................................ 6 3.1.1 Gender ................................................................................. 6 3.1.2 Age at Divorce ....................................................................... 8 3.2 Family Characteristics.......................................................................... 9 3.2.1 Socio-economic Status .............................................................. 9 3.2.2 Ethno-cultural Background...................................................
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