Divorce Statistics and Studies Blog

The Neuroscience of Marital Success or Failure

The science of a happy marriage

By Christian Jarrett on cnn.com,  August 17, 2015

via The Association of Family and Conciliation Courts

Credit scores, and gap between spouses' scores, predict marriage & divorce

The one number that’s eerily good at predicting your success in love

By Ana Swanson on The Washington Post's Wonkblog

Based on Dokko, Jane, Geng Li, and Jessica Hayes (2015). “Credit Scores and Committed Relationships,” Finance and Economics Discussion Series 2015-081. Washington: Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, http://dx.doi.org/10.17016/FEDS.2015.081.

Abstract:

This paper presents novel evidence on the role of credit scores in the dynamics of committed relationships. We document substantial positive assortative matching with respect to credit scores, even when controlling for other socioeconomic and demographic characteristics. As a result, individual-level differences in access to credit are largely preserved at the household level. Moreover, we find that the couples’ average level of and the match quality in credit scores, measured at the time of relationship formation, are highly predictive of subsequent separations. This result arises, in part, because initial credit scores and match quality predict subsequent credit usage and financial distress, which in turn are correlated with relationship dissolution. Credit scores and match quality appear predictive of subsequent separations even beyond these credit channels, suggesting that credit scores reveal an individual’s relationship skill and level of commitment. We present ancillary evidence supporting the interpretation of this skill as trustworthiness.

Young Unmarrieds More Marriage-Pessimistic, Pro-Divorce than Married People

Wendy Jessen writes in the heraldtimesonline.com:

Why do so many marriages end in divorce? Could our attitudes and views have something to do with the success or failure of our own marriages?

A study from the National Center for Family and Marriage Research explores the views of Generation X and Millennials on marital success rates. Based on the study, two out of five people (men and women) said that marriages have failed for most of the people they know. Forty to fifty percent of those who chose to cohabit at some point in their life or who are currently cohabiting, see marriage pessimistically. Interestingly, the number is much less for those who are currently married without prior cohabitation -- 22 percent.

Additionally, the majority believe that cohabiting before marriage reduces the risk of divorce, while among those who are married, only about one-third agree that cohabiting prior to marriage helps the marriage last.

Finally, those who have never been married also see divorce as a reasonable solution when a couple can't seem to work through problems. Conversely, married couples are more likely to seek other solutions to marital problems rather than use divorce as an answer to problems.

... Our perceptions are only based on our own reality -- the sum of what we have experienced throughout our lives. It's easy to make a rash judgment based on things you have heard or observed, with limited knowledge on the matter.

... If you get married with the idea that your marriage will eventually fall apart and fail, there's a good chance it will. Why make such a glum self-fulfilling prophecy? Why not go into marriage believing it will last and with the attitude and understanding that marriages take work? If your view of marriage is pessimistic, you'll likely find many reasons to support your theory. The opposite is also true.

Are you pessimistic about marriage success?

By Wendy Jessen of FamilyShare at heraldtimesonline.com via the Association of Family and Conciliation Courts

Based on "Generation X and Millennials Attitudes Toward Marriage & Divorce" (2015) by Kasey J. Eickmeyer at the National Center for Family and Marriage Research at Bowling Green State University.