(Information gleaned from Baucom et al.,2006; Greenfeld et al., 1998; Koss et al.,
1994; La Taillade, 2006; Logan et al., 2002; Markman et al., 2006;
O’Leary et al., 2000; Schumacher et al., 2001; Slep & Heyman, 2001;
Slep & O’Leary, 2001; Wathen & MacMillan, 2003; San Diego Domestic Violence
Council, 2006 – http://www.sandiegodvcouncil.org/about/mission.php. The difficulties
in estimating the exact prevalence of domestic violence was underscored in a recent
Government Accountability Report – GAO 07-148R obtainable from the GAO office,
Washington, DC, 20548)
Incidence of Marital Distress
In the U.S., approximately 90% of adults will marry.
Approximately 45% to 50% of first marriages will end in divorce.
In the 1920′s, 1 of 7 marriages ended in divorce. By the 1950′s, the divorce rate was 1 in 5 and by the 1990′s, almost 1 in 2 marriages ended in divorce.
Approximately 25% of couples are divorced within 3 years of marriage.
The average divorcing couple will stay married for approximately 7 years.
Following divorce, 80% of individuals will eventually remarry; with an average of a 3 year period before remarriage.
Sixty percent of remarriages will end in divorce.
The average length of the second marriage is 5 years.
A factor contributing to divorce is the occasion of an extramarital affair. Baucom et al. (2006) report that approximately 22%-25% of men and 11%-15% of women indicated that they had engaged in extramarital sex on at least one occasion. In any given year, between 1.5% and 4% of married individuals will engage in extramarital sex in the U.S. 40% of divorced women and 44% of divorced men report having had affairs. Infidelity doubles the likelihood of divorce.
When considering these statistics on marriage and divorce, and often the accompanying occurrence of intimate partner violence, it is important to consider important racial and ethnic differences, as highlighted by LaTaillade (2006). For instance:
- African-American women are less likely to enter marriage than other racial groups. Only 30% of African-American women are living with a male spouse, as compared to 47% Hispanic women, 55% of non- Hispanic white women, and 60% of Asian women. Overall, 51% of women in the U.S. are now living without a spouse.
- While the vast majority of white women marry by their mid to late 30′s, only 65% of Black women have done so.
- The rate of separation and divorce for African-American couples has increased nearly five fold in the last 30 years, and are double the rate of the general population.
- Approximately 47 % of Black women separate from their first husbands within 10-15 years of marriage, compared with 28% of marriages among their white female counterparts.
- Only 32 % of African American women remarry within 10 years of being divorced, compared to 66% of white women
- The greater marital instability and declining rate of marriage in African-American communities has been attributed to the disproportionate amount of stress including economic strain (unemployment and underemployment), exposure to poverty and violence, due to the continued experiences of racism and discrimination.
Exposure to such chronic stressors can contribute to marital distress and separation and the resultant consequences.