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Divorce trends: What was the style of the marriage?

On behalf of Stange Law Firm, PC posted in Family Law on Monday, July 15, 2013.

When it comes to family law, given the fact that many marriage ideals have greatly changes over the years, this too means the trend among divorce settlements has also greatly changed. Now, many men are the ones being awarded things like child custody, child support and alimony.

In looking at why, the majority of those asked prefer a marriage where both the husband and wife have a role in taking care of the house and children. According to the Pew Research Center, in 1977, 48 percent of those asked thought both husband and wife should have a role in these duties. However, by 2010 this increased to 62 percent thinking the husband and wife should both be taking care of the house and children.

In addition to taking care of the house, according to a recent Pew Research Center study, the majority also believe that both husband and wife should be working. This is quite the shift from the trend of the husband being the breadwinner and the wife staying home to take care of the house and children.

Of course though, there is one thing about wanting equality when it comes to raising children and working, but it is quite another for this to actually happen. For example, even though more young adults prefer the dual-income marriage model, only 57 percent are actually in this kind of marriage.

In looking at why there are more in support of a dual-income marriage model than those actually living within this type of model, researchers suggest this is due to the fact that younger couples who are more likely to believe in dual-income marriage are also more likely to have young children. Those children under the age of 6 simply require more child care hours per week. For many, this means one parent will end up staying home — or not working as much — in order to provide that care.

This difference in who is staying home and who is earning more can play a significant role when attempting to reach a divorce settlement.

Source: Pew Research Center, “For young adults, the ideal marriage meets reality,” Wendy Wang, July 7, 2013

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