Divorce and Remarriage in Norway: A Prospective Cohort Study Between 1981 and 2013

ABSTRACT

As the population of divorced adults has increased, the number of remarriages has followed. Previous research has mainly compared first-time marriages with remarriages, whereas this study analyzes 4 different constellations of marriages: first time for both spouses, first time for one and second time for the other, second time for both, and third time or more for at least one member of the couple. The analyses are based on data from all Norwegian 2-sex marriages formed from 1981 to 2013, for a total of more than 770,000 marriages. The findings indicate that remarried couples are considerably more prone to divorce compared to couples married for the first time, particularly marriages in which both partners are remarried and marriages in which at least one of the partners is married for the third time or more. The differences between the various groups of marriages decline with a longer duration of the marriage.     

Equity and Relationship Maintenance in First Marriages and Remarriages

ABSTRACT

Research indicates that individuals in remarriages experience less marital satisfaction than individuals in a first marriage. This study sought to determine whether variations in equity and maintenance might explain this phenomenon. A sample of 547 married individuals from the United States completed an online survey. Results suggested virtually no differences in the use of positive or negative maintenance by marriage type. Although maintenance use predicted a larger amount of the variance in satisfaction among those who were remarried, more maintenance behaviors entered the regression equation predicting satisfaction for individuals in first marriages. Finally, equity predicted the use of maintenance for both marriage types.     

The Impact of Marital Quality,Divorce, and Remarriage on the Relationships Between Parents and Their Children

SUMMARY

This paper examines data from a panel study on the long-term effects of parental marital quality and divorce on relationships between parents and adult children. Attention is focused on whether these effects vary by age and gender of child as well as the theoretical explanations linking mother-father and parent-child relations. The relational quality between adult children (18-31 years old) and both mothers and fathers is examined from the perspective of both children and parents. Among intact families, parental marital quality has long-term effects on father-child relations, regardless of gender, whereas short-term effects are characteristic of mother-child relations and only perceived by mothers. Further, although divorce without remarriage hurts sons' relationships with both fathers and mothers, it hurts father-daughter relations even more. Mother-daughter bonds appear to be improved by divorce, with declines in income explaining a large portion of the tendency for divorce to affect father-child relations.     

Conflict Patterns and Family of Origin Conflict in Newly Initiated Remarriages

ABSTRACT

The poor marriage material hypothesis explains the high divorce rate in remarriages as a function of the qualities of people who have previously been divorced. This study sought to test whether conflict in the family of origin and in the present marriage could substantiate the poor marriage material hypothesis by discriminating between couples in their first marriage versus those in a marriage with a history of divorce. A sample of 66 newlywed married couples, half in first marriages and half in remarriages, were recruited through marriage licenses and student referrals. Family of origin conflict discriminated between first and remarried couples. Namely, wives' exposure to interparental conflict significantly increased the odds that they were presently married to a husband who had previously been divorced. Differences between first and remarried couples' own conflict patterns were largely unremarkable with the exception of remarried couples seeing their partners as being more compliant and unassertive relative to those in first marriages.     

A Test of the Family Stress Model Using a Remarriage Sample

ABSTRACT

The family stress model delineates the connections between economic hardship, economic pressure, marital interactions, marital quality, and, finally, marital instability. This study evaluated the family stress model in a sample of 661 remarried couples using structural equation modeling. The model was evaluated both within and between spouses. Consistent with the family stress model, marital instability and quality were influenced by economic hardship and pressure through decreased spousal warmth and increased spousal hostility. Implications for remarriage education and counseling are discussed.     

Remarriage,Unmarried Cohabitation,Living Apart Together: Partner Relationships Following Bereavement or Divorce

Substantial proportions of people enter into new partner relationships after bereavement or divorce. Nowadays in Europe, unmarried cohabitation and living‐apart‐together relationships are frequently opted for at repartnering. Drawing on the Netherlands’ Living Arrangements and Social Networks survey of men and women aged 55 to 89 years (N = 4,494), this article explicates the determinants that lead widowed or divorced people to enter into old and new types of partner relationships. Cox proportional hazard regression analyses revealed that age at most recent union dissolution, the number of partner dissolutions, working during and after the most recent union dissolution, and other demographic variables are important in weighing the pros and cons of different types of living arrangements.     

Repartnering Following Divorce: Implications for Older Fathers' Relations With Their Adult Children

This study examined the implications of postdivorce fathers' new unions and additional (step)children for two aspects of older fathers' relations with adult children born from a prior relationship: frequency of social contact and fathers' financial transfers. Data from multiple waves of the Health and Retirement Study (N = 13,017 observations on 4,997 adult children belonging to 1,917 ever‐divorced fathers) were used to estimate multilevel models. The results indicated that divorced fathers who go on to form a new union have weaker relations with adult children from a prior union than their postdivorce counterparts who remain single. This finding partly reflects the detrimental effects of repartnered older fathers' new biological children and stepchildren. There is no difference between older remarried and cohabiting fathers' intergenerational ties. Moreover, fathers' additional biological children and stepchildren have similarly negative effects on fathers' relations with adult children from a previous union.     

The Role of Cohabitation in Remarriage

Using 3 subsamples of remarried respondents (n =1,583, 971, and 926) in the first wave of the National Survey of Families and Households, this study investigates how different types of cohabitation, especially postdivorce cohabitation, affect the timing and quality of remarriage in the United States. Ordinary Least Squares regression analysis indicates that postdivorce cohabitation in general and postdivorce cohabitation with multiple partners in particular delay remarriage. Furthermore, echoing previous research findings on the relationship between premarital cohabitation and relationship quality, the ordered logistic analysis shows that postdivorce cohabitation with a spouse is associated with lower levels of remarital happiness, and postdivorce cohabitation of all types tends to be associated with higher levels of remarital instability. Implications of these findings are briefly discussed.     

Divorce and Mid- and Later Life Families: A Phenomenological Analysis with Implications for Family Life Educators

ABSTRACT

A growing number of mid- and later life individuals and families are experiencing divorce and remarriage. Mid- and later life families are those who have begun to or may have launched their adult children. As a result, these families may include in-laws and grandchildren. Limited research has addressed the potentially unique experiences of these families whose lives are made more complex and complicated by divorce, remarriage, or both. The purpose of this article is to examine, from a phenomenological perspective, the lived experiences of individuals and families experiencing divorce in mid- and later life. In so doing, four case studies are presented that represent four common pathways through divorce and remarriage in mid- and later life: career divorced, seasoned divorced, newly divorced, and interrupted career divorced. Using these case studies and our interpretation of them based on a phenomenological approach, we offer implications for family life educators for improving the delivery of educational services to families facing mid- and later life divorce and remarriage.     

The Impact of Parental Remarriage on Children

Abstract

A meta-analysis of 61 studies was undertaken to determine the impact of parental remarriage on the academic achievement and psychological well-being of children, of which the vast majority were adolescents. Separate analyses were done on studies that did and did not use sophisticated controls in their analyses. Comparisons were made between children from remarried versus intact families as well as children from remarried and divorced or widowed single-parent families. Children from remarried family structures achieved academic levels that were generally more than two-tenths of a standard deviation lower than children from intact families. Children from remarried families also achieved somewhat lower levels than children from corresponding single-parent family structures. The difference between children from remarried families and children from intact families was nearly two- tenths of a standard deviation for measures of psychological well-being, for studies that did not use sophisticated controls and was somewhat less for studies that did use sophisticated controls. The significance of these results is discussed, doi: 10.1300/J002v40n04_05     

Got Trust? A Mixed-Method Consideration of How Past Relationships Influence Perceptions of Trust

Although trust is an integral part of marriage, there is comparatively little research detailing how it develops between spouses. How trust develops and is maintained might differ between first and second marriages. This study used qualitative and quantitative reports from individuals in a first marriage (n = 353) or second marriage following divorce (n = 163) to examine how past relationships influenced current trust. Qualitative results provided evidence for how trust processes were developed in remarried versus first-married individuals. Quantitative analyses were used to validate these results. Clinical implications are provided to help clinicians address issues related to trust between spouses.     

The Timing of Cohabitation and Engagement: Impact on First and Second Marriages

Using a multistate sample of marriages that took place in the 1990s, this study examined associations between premarital cohabitation history and marital quality in first (N = 437) and second marriages (N = 200) and marital instability in first marriages (intact N = 521, divorced N = 124). For first marriages, cohabiting with the spouse without first being engaged or married was associated with more negative interaction, higher self‐reported divorce proneness, and a greater probability of divorce compared to cohabiting after engagement or marriage (with patterns in the same direction for marital positivity). In contrast, there was a general risk associated with premarital cohabitation for second marriages on self‐reported indices of marital quality, with or without engagement when cohabitation began.     

Continuity and Change in Stepfather–Stepchild Closeness Between Adolescence and Early Adulthood

This study draws on nationally representative data from Waves I and III of the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health (Add Health) to prospectively examine the factors associated with different patterns of closeness between stepchildren and their stepfathers over the transition to adulthood in stably married stepfamilies (N = 881). Results indicate much variability in how these relationships unfold over time, although a sizable minority of youth remained close to their stepfathers. Consistent with family systems theory, the quality of other family relationships is particularly important to understanding children's relationships with stepfathers as they develop over time.     

Evaluating the Effectiveness of a Relapse Prevention Group

ABSTRACT

Relapse prevention programming is arguably the most significant development in the addiction field since the formation of Alcoholics Anonymous. A multiple time series design was employed to evaluate the effectiveness of delivering relapse prevention programming through a small group format. Using the Coping Behaviours Inventory, significant changes were found between pre-test scores and scores after completion of eight weeks of group counselling. Improvement continued two and six months post group with clients increasing the number and frequency of coping responses over time. An unexpected outcome was the discovery that while there was a gradual increase among males in using the new strategies, there was a significant increase among female clients over time. This leads to the question of whether different counselling strategies should be employed with men and women in relapse prevention programming.     

Exploring patterns of personal growth initiative and posttraumatic stress: A latent profile analysis

Objective: This study examined the inconsistent relationship found between personal growth initiative (PGI) and posttraumatic stress symptoms (PTSS) by exploring potential subgroups. In addition, after identifying the subgroups, potential predictors of these subgroups were examined. Participants: Participants were 534 undergraduate students who experienced a potentially traumatic event (PTE). Data collection occurred from March 2013 to December 2014. Methods: Because this was a preliminary study, archival data was used. Participants consisted of students who experienced a PTE within the past three years. Results: Latent profile analysis indicated a five-class model as the best-fitting model. Direct exposure and intentionality of the event were significant predictors of class membership; length of time since event and gender did not predict class membership. Conclusions: The current study provides a potential explanation of the inconsistent results between PGI and PTSS and also highlights the importance of acknowledging subgroups when utilizing PGI after a PTE.     

Exploring the Potential of a Collaborative Web-based E-portfolio in Social Work Field Education

ABSTRACT

In most Australian workplaces that provide placement opportunities, social workers are unlikely to receive reductions in their workload for supervising students and completing the administrative requirements of field education subjects. Associated time costs lead to reluctance to supervise social work students. This article investigates the potential for a web-based e-portfolio tool to support and streamline social work field education and assessment processes. Social work students, field educators, and university-appointed liaison staff (N = 110) from a large Australian university completed an online survey administered at the end of placement. The majority of participants reported that the e-portfolio provided a useful framework for recording evidence of student learning; was simple to use; saved time; and had the capacity to enhance the quality and immediacy of communication between parties. We argue that e-portfolios can efficiently capture evidence of student learning and provide a robust mode of supporting social work students on placement.     

Childhood Family Dissolution and School Outcomes. The Timing of Dissolution Effects

Abstract

Existing studies estimate the negative effects of family dissolution; however, evidence regarding when such effects appear is lacking. The effect is hard to isolate for at least two reasons: families select into dissolution; and effects might be observed before, during and after the dissolution. This paper presents evidence regarding the timing of dissolution effects. Family fixed effects (FEs) and a value-added model handle selection; timing is addressed by exploiting repeated observations of student performance before and after dissolution. I present evidence of weaker performance among students from dissolving families, an effect mainly driven by the deterioration of family relations before the break. The divorce itself seems to be less important.     

Rebound effects in persuasion: considering potential ironic effects of suppression and correction / Efectos rebote en la persuasión: una consideración de los posibles efectos irónicos de la supresión y la corrección

Abstract

Previous theory and research in persuasion has failed to examine possible ironic effects of attempting to suppress or to correct for influences of a potentially biasing source. Yet, because people often encounter sets of persuasive communications in order (e.g., in advertising), such rebound effects seem possible. Data on such possibilities are scarce, however. Here we present a relevant study. It followed the typical single-shot persuasive message with a second message on an unrelated topic but employed a similar type of (potentially biasing — attractive or unattractive) source. Attitudes following the second communication showed increased source impact for participants asked to suppress source-related thoughts during the first message (especially when the second message was encountered under load). Instructions to correct for potential source effects during the first message did not show ironic effects following the second message. This relatively small study is not enough to make definitive claims, but it suggests that rebound effects of thought suppression are possible in (repeated) persuasion settings. Future research and open questions regarding ironic effects are discussed.     

Disentangling the Relationship Between Age and Marital History in Age-Assortative Mating

Many scholars have noted that divorcees have age-assortative mating patterns distinct from the never-married. Similarly, comparisons between older and younger individuals indicate that hypergamy becomes increasingly likely with age. Unfortunately, prior research has not been able to disentangle the effects of age from the effect of divorce. Using data from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1979 cohort (n = 12,231 for first marriage and 4,298 for remarriage) and heterogeneous choice models, this research predicted the likelihood of age homogamy and hypergamy as a function of age, marital history, and other factors. The results indicate that homogamy is largely an age-driven phenomena, where the never-married and previously married have similar patterns. However, the likelihood of hypergamy is higher for the previously married, even after accounting for the influence of age in the models.     

Young pioneers: Children and the making of Chinese consumerism

Abstract

This article explores the cross-cutting forces shaping the emergence of consumerism in contemporary China through a detailed study of the craze for the Transformer range of toys among Chinese children in 1989, drawing on original fieldwork and translations from Chinese sources. It argues that rather than viewing the craze as evidence of an accelerating trend towards ‘cultural imperialism’ and Americanization, it should be understood as the product of a complex interplay between three cultural formations: the long-standing and still active legacy of Confucianism; past and present experiences of ‘actually existing’ Communism, and the emerging potentials of the new market oriented economy. The detailed evidence collected for this study suggests that ‘cultural globalization’ is a highly uneven process that must be investigated with proper regard to the specific historical and social dynamics of particular situations.