When divorces are rare, educated women are more likely to get divorced

For years scientists have been trying to understand why some couples decide to divorce, while others do not use this solution. The consensus is that women’s level of education may be one of the factors that determine the probability of divorce. However, in previous studies of the role of women's education turned out to be inconclusive.

 

The issue has been investigated by researchers at the Institute of Statistics and Demography, Warsaw School of Economics. As part of the FAMWELL project they performed a quantitative analysis of the research published to date on the relationship between women's education and the risk of divorce.

 

"The analyses show that the true - as usual - is in the middle. It turns out that, according to the hypothesis of William J. Goode, American sociologist, the relationship between education and the risk of divorce depends on how common and how easy divorces are in given society" - reported the Warsaw School of Economics spokesman Marcin Poznań.

 

According to the release sent to PAP, when divorces are uncommon, and the associated legal, material and social costs are high, better educated women are able to better cope with these difficulties and divorce more often than women with less education.

 

"The difference becomes smaller when divorces are more common and less expensive. Then, less educated women with fewer resources can afford to divorce" - described the Warsaw School of Economics representative.

 

Easier access to divorce is reinforced by the growing economic independence of women. With the emancipation, women from different social groups can more easily afford to divorce and live alone.

 

"The good news may be that at some point the education effect begins to reverse. When divorces are common and easily available, higher education of women begins to favour the more stable marriages. In modern societies, characterized by a high level of emancipation, where women commonly work professionally, and divorce is relatively easily accessible, higher education of women has a positive impact on the stability of their relationships" - reads the message sent to PAP.

 

According to the theories presented by some researchers, highly educated women reach the decision to divorce more easily. Higher education is associated with good employment prospects, so women can afford to bear the costs of divorce and living alone.

 

Higher education allows to better understand the complicated court procedure of divorce. Finally, research shows that these women are less under pressure of social norms to save marriage "at all costs".

 

According to other scholars, women's higher education should foster greater relationship stability. "They argue that educated women are not only in a good position on the labour market, but also the +marriage market+ and can choose a husband who meets their expectations, with whom they can form a happy, stable relationship" - reported the Warsaw School of Economics spokesman.

 

Proponents of this theory also point out that women with higher education should have better interpersonal communication, negotiation and conflict resolution skills in a relationship. In addition, better educated women are less at risk of financial problems, which may destabilize the relationship.

 

FAMWELL (Family Well-Being) project is funded by the National Centre for Research and Development under the Lider programme. The aim of the project is to better understand the underlying causes of new behaviour patterns of family formation and fertility in Poland, and the consequences of such behaviour for the well-being of the society.

 

Source: PAP - Science and Scholarship in Poland