Adjustment to separation and divorce

The purpose of this study was to examine the diversity of experience following the breakup of a marriage. The social, psychological, economic, and legal aspects of marital separation were addressed. The sample comprised 205 respondents. Fifty were separated and 155 were already divorced. Ninety-one men and 114 women participated. The participants' ages ranged from 20 to 67 with a mean age of 33. All respondents were White. Of the divorces granted, 96% were uncontested. The participants had been separated between one and 26 months; and the average marriage lasted nine years, with a range of four months to 45 years. A face-to-face structured interview was employed. The interview was divided into the following sections: background information about the marital interaction, relationship with spouse since separation, social network, legal matters, mental and physical health, sexual relationships, and economics. A follow-up study was conducted two years later (see Furstenberg, A726). The Murray Center has acquired computer-accessible data from this and the follow-up study.