Understanding the Divorce Cycle : The Children of Divorce in Their Own Marriages

Preface ix Acknowledgments xi 1 Introduction 1(10) Marriage and Divorce: Coexisting American Institutions 2(3) Divorce and Public Policy 5(1) Outline of Book 6(2) Data 8(1) Toward a Balanced Portrait of the Divorce Cycle 9(2) 2 Why Divorce Begets Divorce 11(24) Father Absence 12(2) Institutionalized Inequality: Racism, Poverty, and Family Structure 14(3) Toward a Better Explanation 17(1) Predivorce Differences 17(2) Context and Community 19(2) Socioeconomic Explanations 21(4) Genetic Differences 25(1) Parental Conflict 26(1) Role Modeling Redux 27(3) Parental Divorce and Offspring Marital Problems 30(3) From Family of Origin to Marital Dissolution 33(2) 3 Coupling and Uncoupling 35(18) The Demography of Marriage 36(2) Why Parental Divorce Affects Offspring Marriage Timing 38(2) How Parental Divorce Affects Offspring Marriage Timing 40(2) Why the Children of Divorce Have High Rates of Teenage Marriage 42(2) Explaining Low Overall Marriage Rates for the Children of Divorce 44(1) Parental Divorce and Partner Selection: Family Structure Homogamy 45(2) How Parental Divorce Affects Partner Selection 47(4) Conclusion 51(2) 4 How Strong Is the Divorce Cycle? 53(23) How Strong Is the Divorce Cycle? 55(1) Differences by Family Type 56(4) Parental Divorce, Social Background, and Respondent Characteristics 60(3) How Social Background and Respondent Characteristics Affect the Divorce Cycle 63(4) Can Unwed Motherhood Explain the Divorce Cycle? 67(2) Red Herrings 69(2) Multiple Marriages and Multiple Divorces 71(2) Conclusion 73(3) 5 Historical Developments 76(17) How Divorce Changed in the Twentieth Century 77(4) Explaining Trends in Marriage Timing for the Children of Divorce 81(1) How Has the Marital Behavior of People from Divorced Families Changed over Time? 82(1) Why Marriage Rates Have Declined 83(2) Explaining Trends in the Intergenerational Transmission of Divorce 85(2) How Much Has the Divorce Cycle Abated? 87(4) Conclusion 91(2) 6 The Cohabitation Revolution 93(12) How Marriage and Cohabitation Differ 94(3) How Parental Divorce Affects Cohabiting Relationships 97(5) Conclusion 102(3) 7 Conclusion 105(22) Parental Divorce and Offspring Marital Behavior: A Life Span Chronology 107(9) Marriage Timing 107(1) Mate Selection 108(1) What Makes the Divorce Cycle Stronger? Or Weaker? 109(3) Historical Trends 112(3) Parental Divorce and Offspring Cohabiting Relationships 115(1) Limitations 116(1) The Divorce Reform Movement in America 116(4) The Argument for No-Fault Laws 120(4) Mixed Blessings 124(3) Appendix A: Data and Methods 127(15) Data 127(1) Survey Weights and Clustering 128(1) Measuring Family of Origin 129(3) Socioeconomic Variables 132(1) Temporal Variables 133(2) Miscellaneous Variables 135(1) Missing Data 135(1) Analysis 135(7) Chapter 3 135(2) Chapter 4 137(2) Chapter 5 139(2) Chapter 6 141(1) Appendix B: Evaluating the Role of Marriage Differentials in the Weakening Divorce Cycle 142(3) Notes 145(14) Bibliography 159(18) Index 177