Divorce Rates: Causes & Solutions for Strengthening Families - Essay Sample

Central idea: I will elaborate more on the high rate of divorce, the causes, and the solution in consideration of the value of the family

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Introduction

I. Attention: When people get married, they desire to stay with each other forever. Yet this usually turns out to be the opposite. Macfarlane (2012), in the article, the 'Consequence of Divorce,' shows that in America, couples aged 15 years and above end up getting divorced and never marry again. Moreover, an additional two percent in the same age group separate but don't divorce their partners. In short, divorce and marriage portray the same experiences. Salter et al. (2011), in the journal, 'Divorce cases,' adds that in Western cultures, many people marry before they attain 50 years old. As known, healthy marriages are the ones where the couples have good physical and mental health. Such relationships are useful to children, especially when they are growing up because they feel happy and protected from educational, social, physical, and psychological trauma. However, America alone surpasses the 50 percent mark, and this makes the rate very high.

II. Topic: My topic today is concerning the high rate of divorce in America. If you see people in court, don't think that they are criminal cases, but families that are breaking up.

III. Credibility: I have grown up in a neighborhood where many families separate. I also have a friend that lives with a single mother. Growing up in this environment and having studied communication makes me qualified to discuss this topic.

IV. Preview: In this speech, there are three things I will discuss: The first one will be the problem that arises due to the high rates of divorce in America. My second point will be the reason why people divorce. The third point is solutions that can be embraced to stop divorce.

Body

I. My speech begins by elaborating more the high rate of divorce in America. A report released by Kulu (2011) in the article ‘Spatial variation in divorce and separation,’ states that divorce occurs across America, but the most significant percentage depends on the city. For instance, in some areas, 20 percent of marriages of persons above 15 years of age have divorced

The report shows that in every state, there is a city whose divorce rate exceeds the projected percentage

Some states have only 13.3 percent of divorce for people aged 15 years and above, while some have over 26 percent divorce cases.

II. Katz (2014), in the journal ‘Family Law in America,’ discovered that in the US, half of the marriages end up divorcing. This shows how married couples are vulnerable, especially during challenges. Most statistics released about divorce are meaningless and unreliable when measuring the rate of divorce in America.

The whole country faces real consequences concerning marriages, but sociologists have challenges when it comes to pinning them down.

One out of two divorces in America comes from faulty assumptions and flawed data.

(Transition: Since we have talked about the high rate of divorce in America and elaborated more on how some figures are not real, we will look at why divorce is taking place in America.

III. My second part will concentrate more on the causes behind the divorce. Research conducted by Flood and Genadek (2015) in the ‘Journal of Marriage and Family’ shows that couples separate because of many issues, but most of them are common. The study discovered that when couples are not committed to each other, 75% of marriages end up in divorce.

Another reason why divorce takes place is infidelity because many people that marry are young, and they are still sexually active.

The third reason why people divorce is because of domestic violence and substance abuse

IV. According to Westland (2011), in the article ‘Journal of Divorce & Remarriage', even though financial problems contribute significantly to divorce, it could not be the main reason, but the differences are found between spouses. Most money problems contribute to tension and stress in the relationship.

One point noted is that one spouse may be a big spender. When the other one discovers, tension is created.

The spouse that saves money may want to create a retirement plan while the spender will not save money. As a result, tension arises, and the couples will disagree.

(Transition: Since we have explained how divorce takes place, we are going to discuss the possible solutions).

V. My third and last part will talk about the possible solutions to divorce. According to Kay-Flowers (2019), in ‘Experiences of Separation and Divorce,’ divorce usually causes emotions such as fear, anxiety, and grief. Sometimes the feeling arises and catches couples off-guard.

In such situations, couples should be kind to each other to avoid fighting.

Couples should also be good communicators by listening to each other to avoid one party building up the pressure because of unspoken things.

Conclusion

I. Prepared Audience: In conclusion, today, I have expounded more on the topic of divorce.

II. Summary: The speech focused on the high rates of divorces, the causes, and the possible solutions to this problem. I would advise couples to stay together because it affects many people. Today, divorce has become a norm, and many parents are doing it even without any reason.

III. Provided Closure: The term divorce itself is a scary term, but yet the rate at which people divorce in America is very high. If people can prevent separation, societies would have many families, but since people are too angry to solve issues, this matter becomes critical.

References

Flood, S. M., & Genadek, K. R. (2015). Time for each other: Work and family constraints among couples. Journal of Marriage and Family, 78(1), 142–164. doi: 10.1111/jomf.12255

Katz, S. N. (2014). Divorce. Family Law in America, 87–144. doi: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199759224.003.0003

Kay-Flowers, S. (2019). Setting the context for the framework: emotions. Childhood Experiences of Separation and Divorce, 87–102. doi: 10.1332/policypress/9781447338659.003.0005

Kulu, H. (2011). Spatial variation in divorce and separation: compositional or contextual effects? Population, Space and Place, 18(1), 1–15. doi: 10.1002/psp.67

Macfarlane, J. (2012). The Consequences of Divorce. Islamic Divorce in North America, 177–209. doi: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199753918.003.0007

Salter, S., Faust, J., & Jacobson, M. (2011). Parent-Child Estrangement in High-Conflict Divorce Cases: An Exploratory Study. PsycEXTRA Dataset, 366–378. doi: 10.1037/e702642011-001

Westland, J. C. (2011). Divorce Insurance: Mitigating the adjudication period financial crisis. Journal of Divorce & Remarriage, 52(5), 271–308. doi: 10.1080/10502556.2011.585084