Title: Divorce and Remarriage
1CHAPTER 15 Divorce and Remarriage
2Chapter 15 Divorce and RemarriageIntroduction
- In a sample of 2,922 undergraduates, 26 reported
that their parents were divorced. - Discussion
- Why do people get divorced? What are factors that
might lead to divorce? What are potential
advantages and disadvantages to divorce and
remarriage?
3Chapter 15 Divorce and RemarriageChapter Outline
- Divorce
- Micro Factors Contributing to Divorce
- Consequences of Divorce for Spouses/Parents
- Consequences of Divorce for Children
- Conditions of a Successful Divorce
- Remarriage
- Stepfamilies
- Children in Stepfamilies
- Developmental Tasks for Stepfamilies
- The Future of Divorce and Remarriage
4Divorce
- Legal ending of a valid marriage contract
- Characteristics that appear to affect divorce
rates - Education
- Age
- Race
- Religion
- Previous Marriage
5Divorce
- Factors leading to a decrease in the divorce
rate - Increase in the age of marriage
- Increase in cohabitation rates
6Divorce by Occupations
- High- and Low-Risk Occupations for Divorce
- Highest dancer/choreographer (43)
- Bartender (38)
- Lowest optometrist (4)
- Next lowest clergy (5)
- Other notable divorce rates nurses (29),
sociologists (23), authors/teachers (15)
7Ending an Unsatisfactory Relationship
- Before ending a relationship, consider the
following - Reviving and improving the relationship
- Acknowledge and accept that terminating a
relationship with be difficult and painful - In talking with your partner, blame yourself for
the end - Cut off the relationship completely
- Learn from the terminated relationship
- Allow time to grieve over the end of the
relationship - Clean your Facebook page
- Data is unclear if remaining unhappily married or
divorcing and remarrying has a more positive
outcome for the spouses.
8Macro Factors Contributing to Divorce
- Increased Economic Independence of Women
- Changing Family Functions and Structure
- Liberal Divorce Laws
- Fewer Moral and Religious Sanctions
- More Divorce Models
- Mobility and Anonymity
- Ethnicity and Culture
9Divorce in Other Cultures
10Divorce in Other Countries
11Divorce Top 30 Factors
- Courtship of less than two years
- Having little in common
- Marrying at 17 or younger
- Differences in race, education, age, religion,
social class, values, and libido - Not being religiously devout
- A cohabitation history with different partners
- Previous marriage
- No children
- Limited education
- Urban residence
-
12Divorce Top 30 Factors
- Infidelity
- Divorced parents
- Poor communication skills
- Unemployment of husband
- Employment of wife
- Mental or physical disability
- Having seriously ill child
- Low self-esteem of spouses
- Being African American
- Lack of commitment
13Divorce Top 30 Factors
- Experiencing rape
- Having premarital pregnancy or unwanted child
- Stepchildren
- High debt or sudden loss of income
- Experiencing violence or abuse
- Having parents who never married
- Marrying someone who has been divorced
- Wife earns higher income than husband
- Falling out of love
- Bankruptcy
14Micro Factors Contributing to Divorce
- Differences
- Falling Out of Love
- Limited Time Together
- Decrease in Positive Behavior
- Affair
- Lack of Conflict Resolution Skills
- Value Changes
- Satiation
- Perception that One Would Be Happier if Divorced
15Consequences of Divorce for Spouses/Parents
- Women are significant more likely than men to
report that they initiated the breakup - Men reported more difficulty than women did in
adjusting to a breakup - The passage of time and involvement with a new
partner were identified as the most helpful
factors in getting over a love relationship that
ended
16Financial Consequences
- Child Support
- Alimony
- Prenuptial Agreement
- Postnuptial Agreement
17Fathers Separation from Children
- Divorce transforms family power from intact
patriarchy to post-divorce matriarchy. - Finley (2004, F9)
18Shared Parenting Dysfunction Examples
- A parent who forced the children to sleep in a
car to prove the other parent had bankrupted
them. - After losing a court battle over custody of the
children, a noncustodial parent burned down the
house of the primary residential parent. - One divorcing parent bought a cat for the
children because the other divorcing parent was
highly allergic to cats.
19Parental Alienation Syndrome
- An alleged disturbance in which children are
obsessively preoccupied with deprecation and/or
criticism of a parent - Not a medical psychosis with specific criteria
- Questioned by most researchers
20Parental Alienation
- Estrangement of a child from a parent
- One parent may alienate a child from another
parent - Minimizing contact
- Exhibiting excessive boundaries
- Having no concern for missed visits
- Withholding affection
- Granting autonomy to the point of indifference
- Sign of alienation irrational behavior on the
part of the child toward one parent
21Consequences of Divorce for Children
- Divorce is like two lions in a den attacking
each other. You know somebody is going to get
hurt real bad. All kids can do is sit behind a
window and watch it happen. - -Anonymous nine-year-old boy
22Consequences of Divorce on Children
- Divorce can benefit children in high parental
conflict homes - Can have negative psychological effect on
children - Primary factor determining the effect of divorce
on children is the degree to which the divorcing
parents are civil
23Who Gets the Children?
- Legal Custody
- Physical Custody (Visitation)
- Joint Custody
24Who Gets the Children?
- Factors determining custody
- Childs age, maturity, sex, and activities,
including culture and religion - Wishes of the child
- Each parents capacity to care for the childs
emotional, intellectual, financial, and religious
needs - Parents ability to agree, communicate, and
cooperate in matters relating to the child - Nature of the childs relationship to each parent
- Protection for the child from physical or
psychological harm - Past and present parental attitudes and behaviors
- Proposed plan for caring for the child
25Joint Custody
- Family relations doctrine
- 16 of separated and divorced couples have a
joint custody agreement - Benefits
- Less fighting between ex-spouses
- Children benefit from the love and attention of
both parents - Children have greater financial resources
available - Stress is shared by both parents
- Disadvantages
- Put hostile ex-spouses in more frequent contact
with each other
26Minimizing Negative Effects of Divorce on Children
- Healthy parental psychological functioning
- A cooperative relationship between the parents
- Parental attention to the children and allowing
them to grieve - Encouragement to see noncustodial parent
- Attention from the noncustodial parent
27Minimizing Negative Effects of Divorce on
Children (cont.)
- Assertion of parental authority
- Regular and consistent child support payments
- Stability
- Children in a new marriage
- Age and reflection on the part of children of
divorce
28Conditions of a Successful Divorce
- Mediate rather than litigate the divorce
- Co-parent with your ex-spouse
- Take some responsibility for the divorce
- Create positive thoughts
- Avoid alcohol and other drugs
- Engage in aerobic exercise
- Continue interpersonal connections
- Let go of the anger for your ex-partner
- Allow time to heal
29Remarriage
- One-fourth of divorcées date someone new before
the divorce is final - Those without children have a higher percentage
of remarrying
30Remarriage
- Issues of Remarriage for the Divorced
- Boundary maintenance
- Emotional remarriage
- Psychic remarriage
- Community remarriage
- Parental remarriage
- Economic and legal remarriage
31Remarriage
32Stepfamilies
- Blended, binuclear, remarried, or reconstituted
families - Fastest growing type of family in the U.S.
- Types of stepfamilies
- Myths of stepfamilies
- Unique aspects of stepfamilies
33Stepfamilies in Theoretical Perspective
- Structural-functional perspective
- Integration or stability of the system is highly
valued - Conflict perspective
- Conflict in a stepfamily is desirable as it leads
to equality and individual autonomy - Interactionist perspective
- Emphasize meanings and interpretations that
members of a stepfamily develop for events and
interactions in the family
34Stages in Becoming a Stepfamily
- Fantasy
- Reality
- Being Assertive
- Strengthening Pair Ties
- Recurring Change
35Children in Stepfamilies
- Feelings of abandonment
- Divided loyalties
- New discipline
- Stepsiblings
- Ambiguity of the extended family
36Developmental Tasks for Stepfamilies
- Nurture the new marriage relationship
- Allow time for relationship between partner and
children to develop - Have realistic expectations
- Accept your stepchildren
- Establish your own family rituals
- Support the childrens relationship with their
absent parent - Cooperate with the childrens biological parent
and co-parent - Structural solutions to problems of stepfamily
living - Stepfamily education Web-based program
37Quick Quiz
- Which of the following is not a macro factor of
divorce? - value changes
- liberalized divorce laws
- women's economic independence
- individualistic attitudes
38Quick Quiz
- What is a micro factor of divorce?
- value changes
- social pressures
- religious beliefs
- economic institutions
39Quick Quiz
- When the novelty of marriage wears off, couples
usually experience - satiation
- infidelity
- increased happiness
- boredom
40Quick Quiz
- The deliberate, systematic attempt to eliminate
the psychological connection of the other parent
in a child's life is called - maternal gate keeping
- paternal alienation syndrome
- maternal alienation syndrome
- parental alienation syndrome
41Quick Quiz
- Compared with litigation, what is the key feature
of divorce mediation? - There is lots of public exposure.
- It is more expensive.
- It fosters a better relationship between spouses.
- It is more time consuming.