More handpicked essays just for you.
The effect of divorce on family life
Outline and explain two reasons for the changing patterns of divorce over the last 50 years
The effect of divorce on family life
Don’t take our word for it - see why 10 million students trust us with their essay needs.
Changing Divorce Laws
In 1995, Statistics Canada data shows that 30% of marriages split (McGovern). 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 changes include three new grounds needed to prove marital breakdown, such as your spouse committing adultery, your spouse causing mental or physical cruelty or a separation of a year it was previously three years. Divorce also impacts the family as a whole, not only the children but also the two parties involved. 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 Canada until after WWII. Until that time, Canada 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 Canada’s divorce laws. Consequently, access to divorce in Canada 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...
... middle of paper ...
...ting must stop children are often harmed by continuing parental
conflict” The London Free Press Online. 19 January 1998. Available: *www.elibrary.ca/cool*.
“Industry Canada: Marriages and Divorces – 1996” M2 Presswire Online. 29 January 1998.
Available: *www.elibrary.ca/cool*.
MacCharles, Tonda. “Divorce law review to go ahead” The Toronto Star Online. 08 May 1999
Available: *www.elibrary.ca/cool*.
MacCharles, Tonda. “Sharing kids aim of new divorce law” The Toronto Star Online. 10
December 1998. Available: *www.elibrary.ca/cool*.
McGovern, Celeste. “The mirage of ‘easy’ divorce” Alberta Report/Western Report Online.
28 August 1995. Available: *www.elibrary.ca/cool*.
Ward, Peter. “History of Marriage and Divorce” The 1998 Canadian Encyclopedia Online. 06
September 1997. Available: *www.elibrary.ca/cool*.
The correlation of divorce and unemployment rates or the relationship between marital satisfaction and employment status have relevance to anyone interested or affected by a marriage. This includes married couples, children, relatives, family friends, psychologists, councillors, lawyers, judges, employers, realtors, tax payers, etc. In other words, practically everyone in Canadian society is affected by divorce; and though divorce has also been seen more commonly throughout the twentieth and twenty-first century than any other point in history, are Canadian divorce rates really on the rise? According to the statistics, the divorce rate of Canadian marriages has been more or less decreasing for the past twenty years. In fact, the number of divorces in Canada for every 100,000 people has decreased from a high of 362.3 in 1987 to 220.7 in 2005 (Wyman 1). Yet when we exclude the large and sudden jump of the
Linder, Douglas O. "Judge James E. Horton." UMKC School of Law. 1999. Web. 24 Feb. 2011.
Cohabitation plays a huge part in Canadian society, 1 in 7 families are a cohabitating union (Zheng & Pollard 2000). The laws regarding cohabitation depend on the province (ibid). The years of union ranges from one year to three years (Zheng & Pollard 2000). Quebec has the largest proportion of cohabitating couples out of all the provinces (ibid). Majority of cohabitating couples found in this study were never married (ibid). Economic circumstances will determine how the couple decides to dissolve the union: either by separation or marriage (Zheng & Pollard 2000). The amount of economic resources a cohabitating couple have is less than that of married couples (ibid). Zhang and Pollard (2000) suggests that economic circumstances cohabitating
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 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
Spohn, William C., and Barbara Dafoe Whitehead. "The American Myth of Divorce." Santa Clara University - Welcome. Web. 21 Feb. 2011. .
Batchelor, John. "Marriage and Divorce." Ainujin Oyobi Sono Setsuwa. Tōkyō: Kyōbunkan, 1901. N. pag. Print.
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...
The Canadian family structure has changed greatly in recent years. While divorce rates have jumped, and marriage rates have plummeted, the resulting change has been single parent families (Myles, 2010). As a result of this, single parent families do not have the benefit of dual...
Many Americans would be shock to learn that “in America, there is one divorce approximately every 36 seconds. That’s nearly 2,400 divorces per day, 16,800 divorces per week and 876000 divorces a year” (32 Shocking). Divorce causes many negative effects and has become too accepted in society. Children and parents are affected physically through the divorce process. There are psychological effects for the members of the family that are involved. The negative impacts on the family’s future life should be taken into consideration.
Marano, Hara Estroff. "Children of Divorce: 25 Years Later." USA Weekend. Sept. 15-17 2000: 16-17. SIRS Issues Researcher. Web. 04 May. 2014.
Sociological Analysis of Divorce as a Social Problem and Proposed Solutions 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.
Approximately, in America there is one divorce every 36 seconds. That 's nearly 2,400 divorces per day, 16,800 divorces per week and 876,000 divorces a year. The average length of a marriage that ends in divorce is eight years (http://www.mckinleyirvin.com/Family-Law-Blog/2012/October/32-Shocking-Divorce-Statistics.aspx). J. Carl Laney accounts in The Divorce Myth, “Bureau reports that in 1920 there was one divorce for every seven marriages, in 1940 one divorce for every six marriages, in 1960 one divorce for every four marriages, and in 1977 one divorce for every two marriages. There were 1,130,000 divorces in 1978, an increase of 39,000 over 1977; provisional figures for 1979 show a gain of another 40,000 divorces…The divorce rate in the United States has continued to climb and nearly doubled between 1967 and 1977. If the present rate continues, there will soon be one divorce for every marriage.” (Laney, 12) While considering the drastic statistics of divorce, it is safe to say that North American society has a positive attitude about divorce. Many people see it as a fresh start- a chance to start over. Society sees divorce as a wonderful opportunity to experience new things, meet new people, and fall in love all over
Divorce is a growing epidemic in Canada and the United States. It affects both parties involved, being the spouses, and also has a profound affect on children of the marriage. Recently our government has been revising the old divorce act. It was apparent that it was time to revise the act because it did not properly protect the children from being caught in the middle of things.
MacHenry, Kelly. "Arizona Civil Verdicts 2011." SWLAW. SWLAW, June 2012. Web. 24 Apr. 2014. .