The Top Reasons for Divorce

Divorce is rarely an easy thing to go through, and usually, a couple will look at resolving their differences in any way that they can before resorting to getting a divorce. However, it is estimated that 40-50% of married couples get a divorce in the US. You might be surprised at some of the top reasons that are cited as reasons behind divorces.

In a report published by Austin Institute, the reasons behind a divorce varied significantly based on gender, so the results are more accurately presented by showing the results separately by gender:

Female:

1. Emotional abuse
2. Spouse unresponsive to needs
3. Spouse’s immaturity
4. Alcohol or drug related problems
5. Tired of making a poor match work
6. Spouse’s sexual infidelity
7. Different financial priorities
8. Physical abuse
9. Married too young
10. Wanted to pursue another life

Male:

1. Tired of making a poor match work
2. Spouse’s sexual infidelity
3. Spouse unresponsive to needs
4. Spouse’s immaturity
5. Different financial priorities
6. Married too young
7. Wanted to pursue another life
8. Problems with spouse’s family
9. Alcohol or drug related problems
10. Emotional abuse

There is perhaps a misconception that many people divorce due to infidelity, but this research shows that this is only the sixth-ranked reason for women filing for divorce. It is highly concerning that emotional abuse is cited as the top reason, and this is a bad reflection on what happens behind the closed doors in any relationship. Emotional abuse can be highly damaging, and some may say it can have a bigger long-term effect than physical abuse.

These divorce stats show just how common the problem is and if you are ever in a relationship where you feel emotionally abused then you should seek help. The problem with emotional abuse is it is less easy to identify than the physical signs of other types of abuse. Sometimes people don’t even realize that they are being emotionally abused until later in life when they have time to reflect on the relationship.

Some of the types of behavior that is classed as emotional abuse include:

• Making threats or intimidating your partner.
• Criticizing your partner, whether through sarcastic comments or putting a person down with various comments and name-calling.
• Economic abuse is where a partner withholds money to use it as power. Or it could even be where they prevent you from getting a job because they don’t want you to have independence.
• Dictating what you can do.
• Emotional blackmail – making threats to make the other person feel guilty.

There are many more signs of emotional abuse so if you are in a relationship where you feel like this, there is a way out. Speak to Orange County divorce lawyers sariehlawoffices.com to get some advice on divorce proceedings if you are unhappy. Regardless of the reason you are feeling unhappy in a marriage, you are entitled to lead a happy life and if that means divorce then so be it.