Divorce

Question 1

divorce stats

Answer 1

In 2021, there were 113,505 divorces granted in England and Wales, a 9.6% increase compared with 2020 when there were 103,592 divorces.

Question 2

current changes in family and households

Answer 2

The number of traditional nuclear families has fallen
Divorce rates have increased
Fewer first marriages, more re-marriages
People are marrying later in life
More cohabiting couples
More same-sex relationships
Women are having fewer children and having them later
More births outside marriage
More Lone Parent families
More people live alone
More stepfamilies
More couples without children

Question 3

explanations for the increase in divorce

Answer 3

1. Changes in Law
2. Decling Stigma and changing attitudes
3. Secularisation
4. Rising expectations of marriage
5. Women increased financial independence
6. Feminist explanations
7. Moderninty and Individualisation

Question 4

changes in the law

Answer 4

Divorce was very difficult to obtain in 19th Century Britain, especially for women. Gradually changes in the law have made divorce easier. The Divorce, Dissolution and Separation Act 2020 reforms the legal requirements and process for divorce. Grounds were equalised for men and women in 1923.

Question 5

three grounds for changes in law

Answer 5

1. Equalising the grounds for divorce between the sexes
2. Widening the grounds for divorce
3. Making divorce cheaper

Question 6

eval of changes in laws

Answer 6

Although the changes in the law have given people the freedom to divorce more easily, this does not in itself explain why more people should choose to take advantage of this freedom. To fully explain the rise in divorce we must look at other changes such as changes in public attitude towards divorce

Question 7

declining stigma and changing attitudes sociologist

Answer 7

Mitchell and Goody (1997)

Question 8

declining stigma and changing attitudes

Answer 8

In the past divorce has been stigmatised. For example, churches tended to condemn divorce and often refused to conduct marriage services involving divorcees. Mitchell and Goody note that an important change since the 1960s has been in rapid decline in the stigma attached to divorce. As stigma declines and divorce becomes more socially acceptable, couples become willing to resort to divorce as a means of solving their marital problems. In turn, the fact that divorce is more common begins to normalise it and reduces the stigma attached to it. It is no longer seen as shameful.

Question 9

secularisation

Answer 9

This refers to the decline in the influence of religion in society. Religious institutions and ideas are losing their influence and society is becoming more secular. Church Attendance rates continue to decline. As a result, the traditional opposition of the churches to divorce carries less weight in society and people are less likely to be influenced by religious teachings when making decisions about personal matters such as whether or not to file for divorce. At the same time, churches have also begun to soften their views on divorce and divorcees, perhaps because they fear losing credibility with large sectors of the public and with their own members

Question 10

secularisation stats

Answer 10

49 countries studied (60% of global population)
43/49 had become less religious 2007 – 2020
Decline of belief amongst the young in UK – 38% do not believe in God compared to 25% who do

Question 11

sociologist behind rising expectations of marriage

Answer 11

Fletcher

Question 12

rising expectations of marriage

Answer 12

Functionalists like Fletcher argue that the higher expectations people place on marriage today are a major cause of rising divorce rates, higher expectations make couples less willing to tolerate an unhappy marriage. Ideas of “romantic love”, “perfect couple”, and “relationship goals” give couples high expectations. When love dies, they seek divorce. Previously marriage had lower expectations. Today on the other hand, marriage is increasingly viewed not as a binding contract but as a relationship in which individuals seek personal fulfilment and this encourages couples to divorce if they do not find it.

Question 13

eval of rising expectations of marriage

Answer 13

However, Fletcher takes an optimistic view. He argues that there is a continuing popularity of marriage. Most adults remarry after divorce which shows that divorcees may have become dissatisfied with a particular partner, they have not rejected marriage as an institution.
Feminists argue that this is too rosy a view, They argue that the oppression of women within the family is the main cause of marital conflict and divorce, although funcs offer an explanation of rising divorce rates, they fail to explain why it is mainly women rather than men who seek divorce

Question 14

divorce stats - women

Answer 14

Among opposite-sex couples in 2021, females were more likely to petition for divorce (63.1%) compared with males (36.9%);

Question 15

womens increased financial independence sociologists

Answer 15

Allan and Crow

Question 16

women’s increased financial independence

Answer 16

One reason for women’s increased willingness to seek a divorce is that improvements in their economic position have made them less financially dependent on their husbands and therefore freer to end an unsatisfactory marriage. These developments mean that women are more likely to be able to support themselves in the event of divorce. Allan and Crow argue that “marriage is less embedded within the economic system now”. The family is no longer a unit of production, so spouses are not so dependent on each other economically. Women now have their own separate source of income from paid work, they do not have to rely on their husbands financially, so they do not have to tolerate the absence of love and in such circumstances, they are more willing to seek divorce.

Question 17

factors that have led to women’s increased financial independence

Answer 17

72.3% of women are paid employment - ONS 2023
Equal pay and anti-discrimination laws have helped to narrow the pay gap
Girls greater success in education now helps them achieve better-paid jobs than previous generations
The availability of welfare benefits means that women no longer have to remain financially dependent on their husbands

Question 18

sociologists behind feminist explanations

Answer 18

Sigle-Rushton (2007)
Hochschild (1997)

Question 19

feminist explanations

Answer 19

Feminists argue that married women today bear a dual burden, they are required to take on paid work in addition to performing domestic labour. In this view of feminists, this had created a new source of conflict between husbands and wives and this is leading to a higher rate than in the past. While there may have been big improvements in women’s position in the public sphere, feminists argue that in the private sphere of family and personal relationships, change has been limited and slow. They argue that marriage remains patriarchal with men benefiting from their wives’ triple shift - paid work, domestic work and emotional work. Hochschild argues that for many women the home compares with work - dual burden. Sigle Rushton - mothers who have a dual burden of paid work and domestic work are more likely to divorce than non-working mothers in marriages with a traditional division of labour. Radical feminist Bernard, argue that many women feel a growing dissatisfaction with patriarchal marriage

Question 20

eval of feminists explanations

Answer 20

Cooke and Gash argue that there is no evidence that working women are more likely to divorce, they argue that this is because working has become the accepted norm for marriage women

Question 21

modernity and individualisation

Answer 21

Beck and Giddens argue that in modern society, traditional norms such as the duty to remain with the same partner for life, lose hold over individuals. As a result, each individual becomes more free to pursue their own self-interest. This view has become known as the individualisation thesis. Relationships have become more fragile because individuals become unwilling to remain with a partner if the relationship fails to deliver personal fulfilment. Instead, they seek what is called pure relationship - one that exists solely to satisfy each partner’s needs and not out of a sense of duty, tradition or for the sake of the children = high divorce rates. This pursuit of self interest is likely to pull spouses apart

Question 22

new right view of high divorce rates

Answer 22

Murry argues that high divorce rates are undesirable because it undermines marriage and the traditional nuclear family, which they regard as vital to social stability. In their view, a high divorce rate creates a growing underclass of welfare-dependent female lone parents who are a burden on the state and it leaves boys without the adult role model they need.

Question 23

feminists view of high divorce rate

Answer 23

They see it as desirable because it shows that women are breaking free from the oppression of the patriarchal nuclear family

Question 24

postmodernists view of high divorce rate

Answer 24

They see high divorce rates as showing that individuals now have the freedom to choose to end a relationship when it no longer meets their neds, they see this as a major cause of greater family diversity

Question 25

functionalists view of high divorce rate

Answer 25

they argue that a high divorce rate is not necessarily a threat to marriage as a social institution. It is simply the result of people’s higher expectations of marriage today. The high rate of re-marriage shows peoples continuing commitment to the idea of marriage.

Question 26

interactionists view of high divorce rate

Answer 26

They aim to understand what divorce means to the individual. Morgan argues that we cannot generalise about the meaning of divorce because every individual’s interpretation of it is different.

Question 27

personal life perspective view of high divorce rate

Answer 27

They accept that divorce can cause problems, such as financial difficulties and lack of daily contact between children and non-resident parents. Smart argues that divorce has become normalised and that family life can adapt to it without disintegration. Rather than seeing divorce as a major social problem we should see it as one transition amongst others in the life course