College-educated women and divorce rate trends since 1970

Education Level Marriage Gender

Divorce is one of the most persistent and troubling social phenomena of our time. The dissolution of marriage has long reaching implications for all affected parties as well as for the broader community. To better understand the phenomena of divorce one must look at trends of divorce, remarriage and the demographic characteristics that are significant in creating or discouraging the event of divorce for both genders. Statistically speaking the demographics of divorce have changed significantly over time but not equally for both men and women. One characteristic which seems to currently produce statistical difference, among women in level of education, according to Isen and Stevenson:

College educated women marry later, have fewer children, are less likely to view marriage as "financial security," are happier in their marriages and with their family life, and are not only the least likely to divorce, but have had the biggest decrease in divorce since the 1970s compared to women without a college degree. In contrast, there have been fewer changes in marital patterns by education for men. (Isen & Stevensen, 2008, p. *)

The recent research on the subject of divorce and marriage as well as that on changing patterns of education among men and women is significant in that it shows changes that are demonstrative of the potential for lasting change, for women especially in the process of marriage and/or divorce. This proposal with demonstrate a need for the development of novel research regarding this trend, but with the addition of financial demographics, such as debt load (family loan, mortgage loan), number of dependent children and finally an additional demographic, beyond education level in the form of parent's marital status. Women and men are fundamentally changing the way they approach marriage, and those with education are viewing it less with a financial security mind set, as each is independently able to provide this alone, and more after education as a choice for mutual contentment. In other words marriage has become a choice rather than a necessity, for those who are educated and therefore have greater opportunity. Yet, there is likely a threshold which causes either deterrence to divorce or the potential for divorce threat having to do with number of dependants as well as the debt load of the family and this work will attempt to discover that threshold.

Literature Review

The initial impetus for the development of this proposal was first personal interest and second the research presented by Isen and Stevenson, in 2008. This work provides a framework that will assist in the development of this proposal, and especially in the econometric model of the methodology. This work provides longitudinal data that is essential to a greater understanding of the divorce and marriage trends over the last 40+ years. The work looks at mostly the trends among women, as the statistical data supported greater trend changes in this gender. The graphic support within the document fully supports the researchers initial explanatory development as well as support of trends by other researchers. Some of the concluding materials is also significant:

Today, marriage is happening later, divorce is less likely, and remarriage is less common. Moreover, the typical life pattern differs by race and education. Among college graduates the typical life pattern now involves a prolonged period of being single before entering marriage and having children. Divorce and remarriage are now experienced by a shrinking minority of the college-educated. Among those with no college, the typical life experience remains marriage, children, divorce, remarriage, but is quickly shifting toward children, marriage, divorce, and a prolonged period of being single or cohabiting before remarriage. (Isen & Stevensen, 2008, p. 22)

These trends are significant for both women and men and are likely responsive to a greater ability of both men and women to live outside of marriage for a longer period of time and to become educated and financially secure prior to marriage. In short the material gives great support for social trend changes and the importance of educational attainment for later satisfaction in marriage. This work also delineates differences between races (black and white) yet this is not important for the current work.

An additional work that has import for this study is that which discusses the traditional formation of family in history, through an economic model, where marriage formation was primarily associated with economic security and procreation security, and where women and men specialized in differing necessities of the partnership, with men generally working outside the home and women specializing in the home and family. According to Stevensen and Wolfers, marriage is far from a static phenomena, and in subsequent research they contend that this specialization is far less likely, that women and men both work outside the home, marry later marriages are formed without the specific purpose of procreation. (Stevensen & Wolfers, 2007, p. 27)

Lastly, this work looked at another issue, associated with marriage and divorce, which looked at the period between 1980 and 2000 and determined that several basic trends are true of marital quality, between 1980 and 2000; marital interaction declined significantly. A decomposition analysis suggested that offsetting trends affected marital quality. Increases in marital heterogamy, premarital cohabitation, wives' extended hours of employment, and wives' job demands were associated with declines in multiple dimensions of marital quality. In contrast, increases in economic resources, decision-making equality, nontraditional attitudes toward gender, and support for the norm of lifelong marriage were associated with improvements in multiple dimensions of marital quality. Increases in husbands' share of housework appeared to depress marital quality among husbands but to improve marital quality among wives. (Amato, Johnson, Booth, & Rogers, 2004, p. 1)

All of the research associated with this topic indicates that economics is the biggest driving force behind marriage change, and most importantly education level and perceived independent economic security for women.

Conclusion

There is a clear sense from the literature that marriage is an ever evolving social institution. This institution is to a large degree dependent upon economics in the micro and macro sense. This work will discuss the issue of how debt load, dependent children status as well as parental marriage status affect educated men and women differently. The development a greater understanding of marriage retention trends among this cohort is essential to a greater understanding of the changing trends. Debt can be a significant factor with regard to divorce and/or marriage retention and this work will provide significant insight into the debt load/family income ratio for educated men and women. Seeking to understand at what point the pressures of debt outstrip the incentive that collective financial burden supports marriage retention and how each varies in its effect on each gender.

Resources

Amato, P.R., Johnson, D.R., Booth, A., & Rogers, S.J. (2004). Continuity and change in marital quality between 1980 and 2000. Journal of Marriage and Family, 65 (1), 1-22.

Isen, A., & Stevensen, B. (2008, February). Women's education and family behavior: Trends in marriage, divorce and fertitlity. Topics in Demography and the Economy National Bureau of Economic Research, *-22.

Stevensen, B., & Wolfers, J. (2007). Marriage and Divorce: Changes and their driving forces. Journal of Economic Perspectives, 21 (2), 27-52.