Risk factors for divorce

Making a marriage work is difficult for many California couples. However, they may be interested in learning about certain risk factors that can make it more likely that they will divorce. Unfortunately, people generally do not have any control over many of these factors.

For example, one risk factor is being the child of divorced parents. The scientific evidence suggests that the experience of watching his or her parents go through a divorce contributes to a child’s propensity to do the same thing. Individuals who got married in their teens or early 20s also are more likely to get divorced. On the other hand, getting married after the age of 32 also is a risk factor for divorce. Another indicator of divorce is when a couple spent more than $20,000 on their wedding. In fact, the marriages of couples that shelled out this kind of money were three and half times more likely to fail.

Mismatched alcohol habits is another major risk factor for divorce. For example, if one spouse prefers to stay sober and the other one routinely drinks, it can cause marital strife. Finally, people who did not finish college were also more likely to get divorced. Women and men who earned degrees had a 78 and a 65 percent chance, respectively, of having their marriages last several decades.

Regardless of a couple’s particular risk factors, the divorce process can still be difficult, especially if they worked hard to save the marriage. A family law attorney may assist with determining the value of any marital property that will need to be divided. If one spouse stayed home to raise the children, a lawyer also may help him or her seek spousal support to help pay the bills while searching for a job.