New study of old data indicates divorce is contagious

Recently-released results of a study reveal that the marriages of couples in Wisconsin and elsewhere may possibly be affected by divorces of friends or close family members. Researchers at Brown University have found that when a family member or close friend gets divorced, study participants were 75 percent more likely to get a divorce, and 33 percent more likely to end a marriage if a friend of a friend was divorced.

The study of residents of Framingham, Massachusetts, commenced in 1948 and was initially designed to examine risk factors associated with heart disease. It was subsequently expanded to include close friends and family members, with the participants being periodically re-interviewed. The divorce results are attributable to a phenomenon that sociologists have termed “social contagion”, defined as the spread of behavior and attitudes among friends, family members and social networks. It has been found to be present in studies dealing with subjects as varied as childhood obesity and the spread of imaginary workplace diseases.

Study results also showed that a divorced person is more likely to remarry another divorced person, especially if the remarriage occurs shortly after the breakup of the previous ones. Participants who divorced often felt that they were less popular, losing the connections to friends that had been part of the other spouse’s social network.

When marriages cannot be repaired, sometimes a divorce may be the way for spouses to get a new start on their individual lives. An attorney who has experience in family law may be able to assist someone contemplating the termination of a marriage by helping to negotiate and prepare agreements covering issues such as property division and spousal support.

Source: Pew Research Center, “Is divorce contagious?“, Rich Morin, October 21, 2013