Introduction
Recent decades have been characterized by an increase in divorce rates. In the past 150 years, there have been increasingly many cases of broken marriages in the U.S. followed by the increased divorce rates. Divorce has become extremely common in today’s society. Researchers have described divorce as the end to a marriage.
It is a consequent of a failure by both couples to continue in the commitment to both marital and family roles. Divorce dates from the ancient Mesopotamia, where Athenian fore-fathers liberally allowed divorce if the person filing for it had presented sufficient reasons to the magistrate. There are various types of divorces, including at-fault, no-fault and summary divorces. Statistics show that many marriages are destined to divorce (Gordon, 2007).
The social and economic hardships young families go through to raise their status to that of the middle class and ensure that children born in the families have a bright future all depend on how stable such a family is. Marriage is no longer a private agreement between two individuals but a core social institution which participates in ensuring socio-economic stability of a nation.
There exists substantial controversy and uncertainty about the effect of divorce on children and the parties themselves. Research indicates that children from separated families are more prone to socio-economic challenges that can affect their further life. Little research has been done on the overall impact that divorce poses to the society (Stevenson & Wolfers, 2007).
This paper will delineate the impact divorce has on a nation’s economy. A nation’s economy is impacted since divorces have some effects on the future of a labor force of a nation. Divorce has an impact on children and determines how they contribute to the economy. This paper will aim at establishing whether divorce is really necessary to end family disputes and whether the economy of a nation would be likely improved if fewer cases of divorce are witnessed.
Hypothesis
Marriage contributes to the social and human capital. Research has shown that intact family structures reduce government expenditures incurred through costly social programs. It has been estimated that divorce and children born out of wed lock use taxpayers money to a tune of approximately $112 billion annually and more than one trillion every decade.
This paper studies the constraints the government undergoes to meet the needs of the separated families assuming that separation results in the additional negative effects on children and grownups being served under the tax payer funded social programs.
Literature Review
Divorce rates are said to have been doubled between 1960s and 1970s. This was the period which witnessed the rise of women’s liberation movements, the sexual revolution and the abolition of laws that restricted marriage between races. Today’s society experiences extremely high numbers of divorce cases.
Divorce is often due to failure by both couples to continue being committed to their marital and family roles. Divorce dates from the ancient Mesopotamia, where Athenian’s fore-fathers liberally allowed couples to divorce if the party filing for divorce had presented sufficient reasons to the magistrate (Coontz, 2005).
According to Stevenson and Wolfers (2007), couples decide to marry or live together if the gains of a marriage exceed those of being single. The gains can be in the form of group benefits such as rearing of children and the pooling of benefits, among others. The technological advances, changes in tastes, institutional and legal environments, and definition of sexual relations have really altered gains from marriages. These have been identified as the main forces behind the separation of marriages (Stevenson & Wolfers, 2007).
With the introduction of family pills into the society, sex outside marriage with little or no fear of unwanted pregnancy progressed rapidly. One of the many effects of birth control methods increased blinded marriages with increased divorce rates. Introduction of household technology reduced the productivity of marriage.
This made men and women have little to gain from marriages. Another important force was the reduction of the gender wage gap. This force was due to the declined occupational segregation and de-unionization. These trends declined the comparative advantages of wives at home. More so, it increased the share of men in home production and reduced the value of specialization within marriages (Blau & Kahn, 2000).
Governments have set regulations that define family as a legal institution. It defines clearly who is to granted divorces, parental obligations and other subsequent rights.
In the 1960s, a new wave of large-scale deregulation of family was embraced in the U.S. More so, the government’s role of establishing who is to marry or divorce has declined. The several legal changes have altered the basis of the marriage contract. This has been done by removing the ability to make inter temporal contracts within marriages and with the shift to right to divorce.
Many empirical studies investigating the increase of divorce rates have reached conflicting views. The most recent test has indicated a sharp increase in divorce cases in two years that followed unilateral divorce laws. There are also other findings by investigators owing that the reduction in female suicides and domestic violence indicated that the unilateral divorce laws had shifted bargaining power to women (Stevenson & Wolfers, 2007).
Another attributed force to increased divorce cases is the ease with which potential partners would meet. According to Mckinnish, sexually- integrated workplaces can increasingly create greater opportunities for opposite sex to meet.
From her 1990 data analysis, she showed how occupation comprised of greater share for two individuals was likely to cause a marriage end. Another related shock in the future marital patterns showed how gender ratios had changed in colleges. Whilst in 1960s women were the minority, they now make up a clear majority (Goldin, Katz & Kuziemko, 2006).
The potential of internet increased efficiency in matching have provided another shock. Internet Tracking Poll in 2005 indicated that 3% of internet users’ couples met online. The advantage of online search is that it expands the set of potential partners and has higher degrees of anonymity. These forces have reduced the attractiveness of marriage (Stevenson & Wolfers, 2007).
Divorces have caused great impact on the children development. Children attain several development tasks related to psychological maturation. Divorce separation of parents impacts on the child’s cognitive development. Some of these impacts include the decreased terms of dependency, reduced sense of security and trust.
Research showed kids go through huge trauma during a divorce. They develop depression, which can be felt through adolescence even into adulthood. Kids from separated families were found to have early maturation and sexual relations described by shorter unstable relationships.
The impact was also shown to be huge on the partners themselves with others even undergoing depression and economic instability as well other constraints, which might affect the society at large. More so, divorces have been very costly on the nation’s economy. Studies have shown that $112 billion taxpayers’ money is spent annually to fund social programs. This will amount to one trillion in a decade.
Other sectors adversely affected include high infant mortality, drug addiction and trouble with law or even teenage pregnancy. Some researchers have proposed the ways to curb divorces including combined parent education offering modules for reconciliation. Others propose delayed divorce processes to give couples time to reconsider reconciliation options (Doherty & Sears, 2011).
Design model
This study will involve the examining of data which is both abstract and tangible. The variables involved in the study are also both abstract and tangible. The study can be defined as a correlation research as opposed to being a descriptive research.
A descriptive research will only portray what is existent while a correlation research goes ahead to find out the relationship in the variables involved in the study (Cherry, 2011). The design model best fitting this study should, therefore, be comprehensive enough to capture all the elements involved in the study.
As such, both quantitative and qualitative methods will be employed towards determining whether the hypothesis formulated holds any truth. As Weinreich (2011) pointed out, combining both the quantitative and qualitative methods in undertaking a research will result in gaining the best results. By using the quantitative methods, one is guaranteed of achieving “objectivity, generalizability and reliability” (Weinreich, 2011, p. 1).
Weinreich further noted that, “techniques cover the ways research participants are selected randomly from the study population in an unbiased manner, the standardized questionnaire or intervention they receive and the statistical methods used to test predetermined hypotheses regarding the relationships between specific variables” (Weinreich, 2011, p. 1).
Some of the data will be analyzed by the quantitative methods including the estimates of the funds directed to divorce related set ups. The study will use calculations to estimate costs borne by tax payers due to divorce. The study will use available literature and information on estimated expenditure cost, and those provided by the government to compare and estimate the impact of divorce on the society.
This will involve drawing up of various mathematical figures to make the analysis of this information possible. Data will be divided into appropriate different periods to make a chronological comparison a possibility.
The study will also comprehensively employ the qualitative techniques to ensure that the study is wholesome. Information on the psychology says that children under due to divorces may be useful in the aspect of pointing out how the productivity is affected by the children.
In conclusion, generally it can be argued that divorce cases have many consequences on the society as well as on the government. As noted above, families are building blocks for a society and therefore if families are broken all over the indication acquired is that that society is a broken one.
The impact of divorce on the nations is a very general study topic and thus an attempt will be made to ensure that all the information collected is tied down to the research question. Some changes are likely to be made in the course of undertaking the study to ensure that the activity yields information that is significant.
References
Blau, D., & Kahn, L. (2000). Gender differences in play. Journal of Economic Perspectives, 14(4), 75-99.
Cherry, K. (2011). Research Methods in Social Psychology. Psychology. Web.
Coontz, S. (2005). Marriage, a history: from obedience to intimacy, or how love conquered marriage. New York, NY: Viking.
Doherty, W., & Sears, L. (2011). Second chances: A proposal to reduce unnecessary divorce. New York, NY: Prentice Hall.
Goldin, C., Katz, L., & Kuziemko, I. (2006). Economic Perspectives. Journal of economic perspectives, 20(4), 133-56.
Gordon, B. (2007). The effects of marriage and divorce on families and children. Manpower Demonstration Research Corporation. Web.
Stevenson, B., & Wolfers, J. (2007). Marriage and Divorce: changes and their driving forces. Journal of Economic Perspectives, 21(2), 27-52.
Weinreich, K. (2011). Integrating Quantitative and Qualitative Methods in Social marketing Research. Weinreich Communications. Web.