Grounds for divorce in England and Wales—a social and demographic analysis

This paper examines the social and demographic features of divorcing couples by the grounds on which their decrees are made absolute and by the party granted the divorce. The demographic characteristics include ages at marriage and at divorce of husbands and of wives granted decrees, duration of mar...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of biosocial science 1986-04, Vol.18 (2), p.127-153
Main Author: Haskey, John C.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adult
Age Factors
Biological and medical sciences
Divorce
Divorce - legislation & jurisprudence
England
Family Characteristics
Female
Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology
Great Britain
Humans
Male
Marriage
Middle Aged
Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry
Psychology. Psychophysiology
Social Class
Social psychology
Sociodemographic Factors
Wales
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Summary:This paper examines the social and demographic features of divorcing couples by the grounds on which their decrees are made absolute and by the party granted the divorce. The demographic characteristics include ages at marriage and at divorce of husbands and of wives granted decrees, duration of marriage, number of children, and the social class of both the husband and the wife. The data are also analysed for particular categories of couples: those in which the wife is a housewife, couples where the husband is unemployed, couples who have a child which was pre-maritally conceived, and couples who have dependent children. There are clear and interesting differences in the demographic characteristics of couples who successfully petition on the various grounds, suggesting that the law is used in different ways by different couples. Reasons for the observed patterns are considered. The data provide some basis for assessing the possible repercussions on divorce of socioeconomic changes, and for informed discussion on whether and how divorce law might sensibly be improved.
ISSN:0021-9320
1469-7599
DOI:10.1017/S0021932000016084