Study: Divorce Rates Are Actually On The Decline

Shutterstock

Just the other day we were thrilled to come across a bit of positive marriage-related research and now it seems like that wave is continuing: According to the New York Times, despite what conventional wisdom might hold about divorce these days, the rate of it is going down—and it’s been declining for the past three decades.

Check out the stats:

About 70 percent of marriages that began in the 1990s reached their 15th anniversary (excluding those in which a spouse died), up from about 65 percent of those that began in the 1970s and 1980s. Those who married in the 2000s are so far divorcing at even lower rates. If current trends continue, nearly two-thirds of marriages will never involve a divorce, according to data from Justin Wolfers, a University of Michigan economist.

The article goes on to state that later marriages, birth control, and changing gender roles (marriage no longer revolves around a breadwinner husband and a homemaker wife) all play a part in the decline of divorces.

It’s worth noting, however, that the decline is highly concentrated among people with college degrees, whereas those who are less educated are still facing divorce rates at levels similar to those in the 70s and 80s.

But either way, it’s nice to know that a phrase we’ve all heard for, well, practically our whole lives—half of all marriages end in divorce—isn’t actually something that can be truthfully uttered anymore. Check out the entire study here.

RELATED: Study: A Whole Lot of People Are Getting Remarried These Days

Like PW on Facebook | Follow PW on Twitter | Sign up for the PW newsletter

Getting married? Start and end your wedding planning journey with Philadelphia Weddings' guide to the best wedding vendors in the city.