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Legislation - grounds for divorce
1923 - grounds of divorce equalised for men and women
Legislation - legal aid
1949 - legal aid available, making divorce more affordable
Divorce no longer discriminating on financial grounds
Legislation - reasons for divorce
1969 - Divorce Law Reform Act
No longer had to be a divorce by fault
Could file for divorce on the grounds of ‘irretrievable breakdown’ of a marriage
Fewer unhappy marriages tolerated
Legislation - same-sex marriage
2014 - SS marriage legalised
Same grounds of divorce for queer and straight marriage
Lavender and beard marriages broke down as the queer member(s) could marry their actual partner
Stigma and changing attitudes - role of the Church
Churches condemn divorce and refused to conduct marriages between divorcees
Stigma and changing attitudes - Mitchell and Goody (1997)
Decrease in stigma has made divorce more socially acceptable
Couples are more willing to divorce to solve marital problems
Secularisation - influence of religion in society
Decreasing influence of religion in society (‘be fruitful and multiply)
Shown by historical lows in church attendance rates
Opposition of churches to divorce carries less weight
Churches have also softened their views on divorce due to fear of losing credibility
People are less likely to be influenced by religious teachings (‘be fruitful and multiply) when making personal decisions
Rising expectations of marriage - Fletcher (1966) - views on romantic love
Functionalist
High expectations of marriage cause an increase in divorce rates
Members less willing to tolerate an unhappy marriage
Romantic love
Marriage should be solely based on love
Every individual has a Miss/Mr Right out there
RL leads to idea that if love dies, there’s no longer any justification to remain married
Members divorce to renew search for their true soulmate
Rising expectations of marriage - Fletcher (1966) - the past
Used to have litte choice in who married who
Family was a unit of production
Marriage for economic reasons and out of duty to family
Low expectations of marriage and therefore less likely to be dissatisfied with absence of romance/intimacy
Rising expectations of marriage - Allen and Crow (2001) - personal fulfilment
Marriage no longer a binding contract
Marriage is a relationship in which individuals can seek personal fulfilment
Divorce if don’t find this
Rising expectations of marriage - optimism
High rate of re-marriage shows that divorcees haven’t lost faith in the institution of marriage
Women’s increasing financial independence - reasons for it and why it leads to an increase in divorce rates
Women less financially dependent on their husbands as more likely to be in paid work
Can fulfil both instrumental and expressive roles themselves
Freer to end an unsatisfactory marriage
Reaons:
Anti-discrimination laws have narrowed the pay gap
Girls’ educational success means they can achieve better paid jobs
Welfare decreases financialy dependency
Fewer family firms as family no longer a unit of production
Spouses no longer so dependent on each other
Women’s increasing financial independence - % of women working
1971 - 53%
2020 - 72%