Survey results: characteristics of a romantic partner

1
Survey results characteristics of a romantic
partner

• Most important
• Physically attractive (avg6.9)
• Fun to be with (avg6.8)
• Dependable character (avg6.7)
• Least important
• No previous experience with sexual intercourse
  (avg2.6)
  
• Artistic (avg3.2)
• Biggest gender discrepancies
• Physically attractive (male avg6.5, female
  avg4.9)
  
• Has a well-paid job (male avg4.5, female avg5.3)

2
Divorce
3
Three eras of divorce

• The era of restricted divorce
• The era of divorce tolerance
• The era of unrestricted divorce

4
The era of restricted divorce (until mid-1800s)

• Marriage seen as institutional
• Divorce rareonly granted on grounds of adultery
  or desertion and usually only granted to men
  
• Annulment was the only alternative
• Ruled that marriage never properly formed

5
The era of divorce tolerance (mid-1800s until
1970)

• Grounds for divorce widened
• Habitual drunkenness, mental cruelty added to
  grounds for divorce
  
• Marriage went from economic partnership to
  emotional partnership
  
• Based on love and companionship
• Divorce increasingly available to women

6
Annual divorce rate
7
The era of divorce tolerance (cont.)

• Divorce rate rose substantially from late 1800s
  to early 1900s
  
• 8 in 1880s 12 in early 1900s 18 in 1920s
• Steady rise broken by spikes after World Wars I
  and II and a dip during the Great Depression
  
• To obtain divorce, still had to prove spouse had
  done wrong

8
The era of unrestricted divorce (1970s-present)

• Divorce usually granted without restrictions to
  any married person
  
• California first state to endorse no fault
  divorce lawsdivorce for marriage breakdown due
  to irreconcilable differences
  
• Shift from companionship marriage to independent
  marriage
  
• Person should not be forced to continue in
  marriage she/he finds unacceptable

9
Factors associated with rise in divorce
(1960s-1970s)

• Social risk factors
• No-fault divorce legislation
• Cultural change
• Womens employment
• Mens employment
• Individual risk factors
• Low income and unemployment
• Age at marriage
• Race and ethnicity
• Personal and Family Background

10
No-fault divorce legislation

• Introduction of no fault divorce (1970s) caused
  surge of divorces in first few years
  
• Reflected back log of unhappy couples

11
Cultural change

• Greater emphasis on personal fulfillment in
  marriage made divorce a more acceptable option.
  
• Shift towards concerns of private family vs.
  concerns of public family.

12
Womens employment

• Growing employment opportunities for women led to
  greater economic independence.
  
• Divorce more possible and attractive to women in
  unhappy marriages.

13
Mens employment

• Opportunities down, reduced earning potential.
• When husbands do not earn a steady income,
  marriages are subject to greater stress and
  higher divorce risk

14
Age at marriage

• Teen marriages at high risk for divorce.
• Half end in divorce.
• Marriage in 20s-30s
• One third end in divorce.
• Marriage in 30s and beyond
• One fourth end in divorce.

15
Race and ethnicity

• African Americans have higher rates of marital
  separation than most racial-ethnic groups
  
• One-half of black marriages end in 15 yrs.
  Compared to about one-third of white marriages
  
• Lesser emphasis on marriage in kinship.

16
Percentage of women separated or divorced by
1980, among all women who had married for the
first time 10 to 14 years earlier
17
Personal and family background

• Cohabitation prior to marriage has higher divorce
  rates.
  
• Children of parents who divorce are more likely
  to divorce.
  
• People who are similar (politics and religion)
  are less likely to divorce - more compatible in
  interests and values.

18
The process of divorce

• There are four major aspects
• Emotional divorce
• Legal divorce
• Co-parental divorce
• Economic divorce

19
The emotional divorce

• Initiator begins to express discontent
• May try to change the other persons behavior or
  the relationship.
  
• If unsuccessful, may invest more energy and
  emotion outside of marriage.
  
• At some point, dissatisfaction is expressed and
  confrontation occurs.
  
• Separation
• Attachment that has occurred during marriage is
  expressed in separation distress even for
  initiator.
  
• Eventually most people do adjust - 2 to 4 years
  to recover

20
The legal divorce

• Property and Assets
• Intangible assets
• Professional license, educational credential
• Alimony Maintenance payments from ex-husband to
  ex-wife
  
• Few couples now agree to it, and few judges order
  it
  

21
Co-parental divorce

• Child Custody
• Legal custody Right to make important decisions
  about the children and the obligation to have
  legal responsibility for them.
  
• Joint legal custody Both parents retain
  responsibility and decision-making about child.
  
• Physical custody Right of a divorced spouse to
  have ones children live with him/her.
  
• Joint physical custody Arrangement where child
  spends substantial time in both parents
  households.

22
Co-parental divorce (cont.)

• In reality, most children still remain in care of
  their mothers.
  
• Creates an imbalance with women having more
  responsibilities.
  
• Level of contact between fathers and children is
  low.
  
• Co-parenting Parents coordinate activities and
  cooperate in raising children.
  
• Parallel parenting Gravitate toward more
  detached style, both parents operating separately.

23
Economic divorce

• Many fathers fade from childrens lives because
  they cannot or will not contribute to their
  support.
  
• Many mothers are hit with a financial double
  whammy.
  
• Lose husbands income
• Average mothers standard of living goes down one
  third in the first year
  

24
Expert panel on children of divorced parents

• Using your textbook as a guide, take 10 minutes
  to come up with at least 5 questions for the
  expert panel.
  
• Look at the sections regarding divorce and
  children. Ask relevant questions about the
  topics Cherlin addresses.
  
• i.e., loss of a parent, multiple transitions, the
  sleeper effect, future relationship effects on
  children of divorced parents.