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Theories explaining causes of domestic violence
Theories explaining causes of domestic violence
Causes of domestic violence from both the psychological and the sociological perspectives
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The greatest change to happen to family structure in the past century was the increase in divorce rates (Amato 2000 p 1269). Divorce statistics are not easily measured and the perception that 50% of all marriages will end in divorce is overgeneralizing and is incorrect (US Divorce Rates). In all of the studies that have been researched for this paper, it has been shown that being married is associated with better mental health than being unmarried. Various surveys have overall found that divorced individuals, compared to those that are married, “report higher levels of depression, anxiety, and general unhappiness” (Booth p 397). It has also been shown that divorced individuals often have “very high levels of meaninglessness and very low levels of home life satisfaction” (Gove p 131). The mental health effects of divorce depend largely on two factors: whether the individual initiated the divorce or not and the quality of the marriage before the divorce.
Studies have shown that the individual who proposed the divorce mourns the end of the marriage less than the partner who wanted to continue to stay married (Amato 2000 p 1272). Additionally, for those in unhappy marriages, divorce may seem like a relief after the turmoil of a troublesome marriage (Booth p 398-399). Therefore, expressing relief was associated with “fewer signs of mental health problems (Booth p 399). The divorce-stress-adjustment perspective views marital stress as a “process that begins while the couple lives together and ends long after the legal divorce is concluded” (Amato 2000 p 1271). The perspective consists of two models, the crisis model and the chronic strain model, which provide explanations for mental health after a divorce.
The advantaged individual, t...
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...ual who initiated the divorce will probably fare better than their partner during the process. However, it is the unwilling partner who experiences the greatest change over time, because as they become accustomed to their newly single life, they begin to acknowledge that their well-being is much better off. The research also supports that while divorce can create intense distress initially, it tends to dissipate and dissolve eventually. This is consistent with the crisis hypothesis, but for some people, the divorce may provide to be a chronic problem whose negative effects outlast those with similar circumstances.
As previously stated, it would be beneficial to target couples at risk of getting divorce if they do not have a troublesome marriage. They could receive counseling to prevent the mental health issues that may accompany the ending of a problem less marriage.
In the 21st century, divorce has become commonplace not only in the United States, but in many parts of the world. Franklin and Boddie (2004) reported that within 10 years about 40-50% of American marriages end in divorce. In 2009, the divorce rate in the United States stood at 3.6 per 1,000 (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2009). Divorce, however, is not only a social issue, but it has serious health implications. Divorce has been researched extensively and is considered an adverse event (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2009). Adverse events such as personal or parental divorce has been linked to many ailments and conditions including substance abuse, depression, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, cancer, and premature mortality (Sbarra, Law, & Portley, 2011; CDC, 2009).
Divorce has stressors for both the parents and the children in the marriage. This can be seen in a study conducted by Jennifer M. Weaver and Thomas J. Schofield. For this study intact and divorced families were observed. Three main things were observed when doing the study, the income of the family before the divorce, children’s IQ as well as the mother’s predivorce sensitivity (Weaver & Schofield, 2014). The results confirmed the hypothesis that “children from divorced families had significantly more behavior problem than peers from intact families” (Weaver & Schofield, 2014, p.45). As it is seen, the stressors that come along with a divorce is a child’s behavioral problems and the economic well-being of the family. Divorce brings the stressor of economic well-being, for a single mother because if before the divorce, they were of low income, now they may struggle a bit
...ce there may be a possibility of a remarriage that changes the family structure. Remarried families may consist of multiple layers of a stepparent, or children that are from the previous marriage. Since divorce is becoming too common, people have become more acceptable of divorce than a few generations ago. Based on Gallup’s poll conducted May of last year 2013, older Americans are changing their moral attitude towards divorce. “The overall change in Americans' opinions on divorce is also largely a result of shifting views of those who are 55 and older.” When people are exposed to a divorce people will later on adapt to this concept. Whether it is redefining family composition in a negative or positive aspect, divorce has become socially accepted.
Divorce is prevalent in many parts of the developed world, it has been estimated that roughly 50% of marriages in America up until the 1980’s ended in divorce (Rutter). Divorce is arguably a personal hardship for both partners and their children, in that the stress of the divorce places both men and women at varying risks of psychological and physical health problems (Hetherington, Stanley-Hagan and Anderson 1989). However, using C. Wright mills’ definition of the “Sociological Imagination” we begin to view divorce as not just a personal problem of a particular man or woman, but as a societal concern that affects a wider category of people at a personal level. Therefore this essay will examine the societal structures which contribute to divorce
Divorce is and has become a major issue in our society, the reason for that has been attributed to the drastic increase in divorce rates over the years. Divorce often disrupts the flow of the family structure, increases discord, and affects how family issues are handled. Families dealing with divorce are often times in a state of complete confusion and disorder, and filled with frustration, anger, and pain. Power struggles between spouses, which often times spread to the children if there any increase as the addiction worsens. There is a growing concernment among those in different fields like Social Work, Academia, and Mental Health in the United States, other countries, who have taken an interest in how divorce is readjusting
Marriage is a commitment that seems to be getting harder to keep. The social standards placed on an individual by society and influenced by the media inevitably lead some to consider divorce as a “quick-fix” option. “Have it your way” has become a motto in the United States. It has become a country without any consideration of the psychological effects of marriage and divorce. The overwhelmingly high divorce rate is caused by a lack of moral beliefs and marital expectations.
First of all, America has the highest divorce rate among western nations. Divorce rate increased after every major war, and decreased during the Post-World War II economic boom. The divorce rate has more than doubled since 1940, when there were two divorces for every 1,000 persons. Now for the same number of people, there are over five divorces. Studies indicate that there is more divorce among persons with low incomes and limited education and those who marry at a very young age. Teenage marriages are much more likely to end in divorce than are all other marriages. And women who marry when they are over age 30 are the least likely to become divorced. There has been a decline in divorce in the number of couples who have children under 18. Almost 45 p...
Wallerstein, J. S., & Lewis, J. M. (2004). The unexpected legacy of divorce: Report of a 25-year study. Psychoanalytic Psychology, 21(3), 353-370.
Every year approximately 2.4 million marriages occur.Out of those,2.1 millionwill file for divorce in the United States. These marriage and divorce rates have significantly increased since the years past(Coltrane and Adams, 364).According to Schoen, in the 1950’s, 15 out of 1,000 marriages ended in divorce.In the 1970’s, the rates of divorcedoubled,increasing to 40 per 1,000 marriages. Currently, the rate of marriages resulting in divorce remains the same. Most marriages are ending within seven years ofthemarriage for multiple different reasons. Sociologists haveestablisheddivorce as a social problem from the rise in divorcerates due to the early year of marriages (2006).
Girgis, George, & Anderson (2011) define marriage as the union of a man and a woman who make a permanent and exclusive commitment to each other of the type that is naturally (inherently) fulfilled by bearing and rearing children together. These marriages are intended to last eternity and are partially accomplished by raising children together, yet four of every ten marriages lead to divorce and of these divorces, 35% involve children (Ambert, 2009). Children tend to blame themselves for the divorce and are usually caught in the crossfire. These divorces lead to both stress and depression for children and without a strong sense of family, children will have a huge disadvantage over children with a stable healthy family (Arreola, Hartounian, Kurges, Maultasch, & Retana, 2013). Without the ability to cope with the stress of a divorce, children can be effected in multiple ways including a change in mentality, unacceptable behavioural traits and both short and long term emotional factors that will ultimately lead to a critical issue in child development.
Divorce has grown conventional in today's society. First marriages stand a 50% chance of breaking up and second marriages stand a 67% chance of doing the same thing (issue 8 pg 146). It seems as if instead of working out problems and believing in love, people are giving up and throwing away all they worked on together for so long, thinking that their next marriage will be much different. By doing this they are hurting not only themselves but also their children and could cause them to have negative side effects later on into their adult lives according to clinical psychologist Judith S. Wallerstein. Erikson's theory of personality development can help calculate which and how stages are affected when parents get divorce. Stages 3, 4, 5 and 6 seem to be the most affected by the divorce because the main conflicts the child is confronting at the time are necessary to go through them calmly for a healthy development.
No one expects to divorce when they get married but nearly half of all marriages will end in divorce or separation. Divorce can be costly, with court fees and attorneys. Dr. Doherty, noted marriage scholar and therapist has determined a list of risk factors that are attributed to marital problems and divorce. The first three: Young age, less education and less income are coincidently other topics brushed upon in this paper. Impulsive decisions made by younger people to marry leads to children which leads to financial instability. Once a couple has children, they are unlikely to further their education because of lack of time. Divorce also has a negative effect on
One tough thing about today's American family is divorce. In 1816, one marriage out of one hundred ended in divorce. Then between the years 1869-1888, divorce increased up to one hundred and fifty percent. And the worse, between the years 1960-1980, the divorce rate increased up to two hundred and fifty percent. Divorce rates peaked in 1981 and then started to decline a little during the mid 1980's. However, divorce rates now are as high as they have ever been. Now fifty percent of all marriages end in divorce. There are five reasons for the increase in divorce. The first reason is in modern societies; individual happiness is regarded to be important so when people are unhappy with their marriage, they break-up and split. The second reason is it is easier to get divorced financially. The third reason is that women's economic independence has contributed. The fourth reason is the stigma of divorce has lessened so people are not
Pasley, Kay. “The Long-Term Effects Of Divorce.” Stepfamilies 16.1 (1996): 11. MAS Ultra – School Edition.Web. 26 Feb. 2014.
Amato, P. R. (2000). The consequences of divorce for adults and children. Journal of Marriage and Family, 62(4), 1269-1287.