Leading Causes of a Divorce Nation

Divorce rates have plateaued since the early 1980’s in the United States, with one out of two marriages ending. There are several factors that contribute to the cause and are unique to every marriage. Age, race, and education are classified as high divorce categories within the first few years of marriage. Couples who have difficulty transitioning into their new roles due to emotional disappointment, or are experiencing a vulnerable state are likely to divorce. Marriages that are unable to cope with life stressors and exhibit poor problem solving skills will result in discontent with one another and ultimately end in divorce. While self-growth is experienced individually, it is uncommon for a married couple to stay unison throughout their lives. In turn, one spouse will be behind in the process and possibly choose to walk down a separate path, splitting the marriage in two. Remarriage can then occur and often blends families together, this is a difficult process and if not strategically executed it will devastate the marriage.

Accounting for 33% of divorces are age, race and education. When individuals marry young and still attending college or in a dead end job they are predisposed to divorce. Age has “been suggested to be the strongest predictor of divorce in the early years of marriage, possibly because individuals who marry young are less educated and less financially stable” (Divorce and Separation 103). They are most likely to prematurely conceive a child causing financial and emotional hardship. The lack of education in a couple is also a prominent factor for divorce. According to Dr. Susan Brown of the National Center for Family & Marriage Research found that individuals with Bachelor degrees are seven percent less likely...

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