Families And Households- Divorce

Question 1

Define the divorce rate

Answer 1

The number of divorces per 1000 married people per year

Question 2

Name the 3 main ways statistics of divorce are presented

Answer 2

1. The total number of divorce petitions per year (number of people applying for divorce but not necessarily divorced yet)
2. The total number of decrees absolute granted per year(the number of people that have been granted a divorce per year)
   3.the divorce rate

Question 3

When was the first divorce law passed and what did it say about divorce?

Answer 3

1857-Men could divorce unfaithful wives but women had to prove husbands cruelty or another matrimonial offence in addition to adultery
-divorce was still very expensive

Question 4

How many divorces were there in 1921

Answer 4

3000

Question 5

When we’re grounds for divorce equalised for both men and women?

Answer 5

1923

Question 6

When was the divorce law reform act passed and what did it include?

What were the advantages of this act?

Answer 6

1969(came into effect in 1971j
The idea of a matrimonial offence or ‘guilty party’ was abolished
This made irretrievable breakdown of marriage the sole ground for divorce established by proving unreasonable behaviour, adultery,desertion or separation
With or without consent
Divorce available after two years of agreed separation or 5 years if only one spouse wants a divorce

Gave people more privacy as divorces frequent,y led to public scandals as details or unhappy marriages were aired in public law court (empty shell marriages were marriages which were broke down without any matrimonial offence)

Question 7

What did the matrimonial and family proceedings act of 1984 allow for? What did it lead to?

Answer 7

Allowed couples to petition for a divorce after only 1 year of marriage, before it was 3 years
Led to an increase in the number of divorces In 1984 and 1985

Question 8

What did the family law act of 1996 introduce (came into effect in 1999) ?

Why were counselling sessions later abandoned?

Answer 8

Increased the amount of time a couple had to be married before a divorce to 18 months (previously a year)
Introduced compulsory marriage counselling for a period of reflection and consideration in attempt to reduce the divorce rate
Required children’s wishes and financial agreements about them to be agreed before the divorce was granted

These sessions were abandoned as it was found that it actually encouraged couples to go through with the divorce even if they were unsure at first

Question 9

What did the government decide to do in 2011 to help the lover worked family courts?

Answer 9

Referred to mediation to sort out things such as finances and custody of children

Question 10

What year could same sex married couples apply for divorces?

Answer 10

2014 (on the same grounds as opposite sex couples)

Question 11

What are the advantages of to changes to the laws surrounding divorce

Answer 11

A lot cheaper
More equal
Can be divorced without a fault (adultery, desertion or unreasonable behaviour)
Did not have to accept blame
Less traumatic
More privacy
Not as constrained
Quicker process
Still have time to consider the divorce

Question 12

What are the disadvantages of changes to the law surrounding divorce?

Answer 12

Nobody has to take accountability
People could argue that divorce has been made to easy/accessible

Question 13

What groups are more likely to get a divorce and why?

Answer 13

Teenage marriages
-impulsive
-financial instability
-changing attitudes
Childless couples
- No reason to stay together
Couples from different social class/religious backgrounds
-pressure from family
-Disagreements on raising children
Men and women in their late 20s
-changing attitudes
1st 5-7 years or 10-14 years
- they have to tried to make the relationship work but it hasn’t
Working class
-financial disagreements
Couples who’s work separates them for long period of time
- cannot spend time with each other

Question 14

What do femminists argue about a high divorce rate?

Answer 14

-Women are breaking free from oppression of the patriarchal nuclear family

Question 15

What do postmodernists aregues about the divorce rate?

Answer 15

-Individuals now have freedom to choose to end a relationship when it no longer meets their needs
-More family diversity

Question 16

What do functionalists argue about the divorce rate?

Answer 16

-Not nessacrily a threat to marrige as a social institute
-People have a higher expectstion of marrige
-High remarrige rate shows peoples commitment to marrige

Question 17

What do marxists argue about the divorce rate?

Answer 17

-Compititon for resources and power within marrige
-Reduces the chances of being able to msitsin a stable relationship

Question 18

What does Morgan (1996) argue?

Answer 18

-Cannot generelise about the meaning of divorce because everyone has different interpretations

Question 19

Who says that divorce has become normalised, that it is part of the life course and that it is not a mjor social problem?

Answer 19

-Carol Smart (2011)

Question 20

What are the main explanations for the increase in divorce?

Answer 20

-Changes in the law
-Changing social attitudes
-Secularisation
-Changing role of women
-Rising expectations of marrige
-Reduced functions of the family
-Privatised nuclear familys
-Increased life expectancy
-More effective contraception

Question 21

How have chnages to the law increased divorce?

Answer 21

-Divorce is easier and cheaper
-Given men and women equal rights
-Grounds were widend to include adultery,desertion and unreasonable behaviour
-2019- no fault divorce
-Reform act 1969

Question 22

What did the reform act 1969 include?

Answer 22

-No guilty party
-Irretriveable breakdown was now a valid reason
-Divorce avaliable after 2 years of marrige in comparison to 5
-Can be done if only one spouse wants a divorce

Question 23

How have changing social attitudes increased divorce?

Answer 23

-Become normalised and reduced stigma
-Greater freedom of choice- postmodernists
-Less constrained by traditions, social expectations, norms and family ties
-Relatiuonships are no longer based on the idea od permenance
-People arent as afraid of the consequences

Question 24

How has secularisationincreased divorce?

Answer 24

-Goode (1971) and Gibson(1994)
-Marrige has become less sacred
-More of a personal and practical commitment which can be abandend if it fails
-Less than 1/3 pf marriges involve a religious ceremony
-Less rigid view of divorce
-Not many people attach religious significance to their marriges

Question 25

How has the chnaging role of women increased divorce?

Answer 25

-2/3 of divorce petitions are initiated by women more women are unhappy in their marriges
-Womens expectations of marrige and life have increased
-Less willingf to accept the patriarchal nature of the nuclear family and marrige
-Do not want to scaraficr leisure activities
-Careers, less financially dependedent

Question 26

How have rising expectations of marrige increased divorce?

Answer 26

-Couples expect more from their marriges
-Growing privatistaion of the nuclear family, couples rae more likely to spend time Together which will strengthen or weaken the relationship
-High divorce rate and remarriges means better quality of marrige
-Families split up and reform happier families

Question 27

How have reduced functions of the family increased divorce?

Answer 27

-Traditional family functions have been transfred to other social instituitions
-Marrige has bevome less of a practical nessacity
-Less bonds linking marrige partners

Question 28

How have the growth of privatised nuclear families increadsed divorce?

Answer 28

-No longer easily able to get advice from relatives
-Not as easy to take refuge with other family members
-Extra demands are placed on each partner
-Less pressure to retain marriges
-More pressures but less contraints

Question 29

How has increased life expectancy increased divorce?

Answer 29

-Increases the number of years you could be together
-More time for something to go wrong/derail

Question 30

How has more effective contraception increased divorce?

Answer 30

-Safer sex outside marrige- weakens traditional constrains
-Greater instability