The Pros And Cons Of Divorce

The Dilemma of Divorce

The divorce rate in America for first marriages is 41 percent, second marriages is 60 percent, and third marriages is 73 percent. (Gozich) Leo Gozich is the president of National Association of Marriage Enhancement and has studied the topic of divorce for many years. In his article, he includes, “Over the last 27 years, since no-fault divorce legislation swept across the nation like a tidal wave, America has witnessed a 279 percent increase in the divorce rate; and the fallout for families and society has been tragic.” When contemplating divorce, these couples made life changing decisions. Divorces occur for innumerable reasons differing in each marriage circumstance. Couples often think their problems are temporary,
Parents are often told to “think about the children.” Doctor Judith S. Wallerstein, the Executive Director of the Center for the Family in Transition, California, stated in her scholarly journal : “A comprehensive review of research from several disciplines regarding long-term effects of divorce on children yields a growing consensus that significant numbers of children suffer for many years from psychological and social difficulties associated with continuing and/or new stresses within the post-divorce family and experience heightened anxiety in forming enduring attachments at later developmental stages including young adulthood.” In this, Wallerstein is making the claim that divorce effects children so deeply that they suffer from stress, anxiety, and psychological and social difficulties. While these have been common results, divorce is sometimes in the well-being of all family members. If parents argue often, disrupting and terrifying children, (especially if young) then separating would relieve family members from the anxiety that arguments and fighting cause. Robert E. Emery, a Professor of Psychology and Director of the Center for Children, Families, and the Law, Virginia, claims experts are often confused on the true effects of divorce on children. In his article, he includes children whose parents’ marriage “was full of intense conflict and
Although there are estimated percentages of marriages which contained physical abuse, the exact amount is unknown because many are unreported. Some spouses are pressured into keeping the violent situation to themselves. Violent abuse does not only happen to women; men also suffer physical abuse. According to national statistics, one in three women and one in four men have experienced some type of physical abuse by an intimate partner in their lifetime; Severe physical abuse is less, a reported one in seven women and one in eighteen men by their intimate partners. (National Coalition Against Domestic Violence) Just as affairs, remaining in a violent marriage would be difficult. Sometimes, forgiving someone once leads to them taking advantage and making the mistake again. Violent marriages are unhealthy to not only spouses, but also children. Children with violent parents grow up watching their parents fight. This is an unhealthy situation for all members of the family. Ongoing violent marriages are difficult to renew; the marriage is not easy to