In-depth interviews were conducted with 21 clergymen highly involved in assisting divorcing couples, in an attempt to discern their attitudes toward intervention in divorce. Respondents viewed divorce as a traumatic experience involving four discrete psychological stages. (Author)

Reduction in fertility of remarried women relative to once married women was investigated. When marital history of husband was controlled, it became evident that a greater reduction of fertility was observed among women with previously married husbands than among remarried women whose husbands had not been previously married. (Author)

The proposition that age at first marriage is inversely related to the risk of divorce was examined by means of detailed age-duration-specific divorce rates for California 1969. A strong inverse relationship was found for male ages at marriage 18 through 25 and female ages at marriage 16 through 24. (Author)

Although not the preferred type of family formation, conjugal succession is now an accepted, if not expected, alternative to continuous marriage in the United States. This new trend appears to be related to a shift in the meaning of matrimony. Previously, marriage was part of a cultural pattern of transitions and as such was closely timed to…

Men and women were randomly chosen from courthouse divorce files. After initial contact by mail and by phone, those who agreed were mailed questionnaires developed to assess adjustment to divorce and to obtain information about the nature of divorce. Of those sent questionnaires, 44% completed and returned the assessment; the total sample…

Utilizing data from 1970 National Fertility Survey, this paper compares levels of marital homogamy--in age, education and religious identification--of women in their first marriages and women in second marriages, also in previous marriages of twice-wed women. Twice-wed women experience low homogamy in current and first marriages. (Author)

Experiences of cohorts of Swedish females born between 1885-1889 and 1940-1944 are examined, and found to agree with theoretical arguments that increases in female labor-force participation improve feasibility of marriage, while reducing the desirability relative to available alternatives. Increased female labor-force participation also increases…

A comparison of the reported marital happiness of ever-divorced and never-divorced white respondents to three recent U. S. national surveys reveals significantly greater marital happiness for never-divorced females but not for never-divorced males. Even among females, the difference in the percentage of "very happy" responses was less…

The Task Force on Divorce and Divorce Reform was established by the Family Action Section of the National Council on Family Relations in the Fall of 1971. Its purpose was to study divorce in relation to the family, and draft a report which would constitute the basis for action by the NCFR and its members. Since several aspects of divorce were to…

This research investigated the relationship between early childbearing and marital instability. Women with large families and those with no children were the most likely to experience disruption. The lowest dissolution rates were found for those with moderate numbers of children. (Author)

The Institute of Family Studies has completed its fourth year of operation, and government and public demand for input from the Institute is growing beyond its capacity. This report focuses on current operating difficulties as well as on the structure and activities of the Institute. The first section, entitled "Structure and…

This newsletter's first article is the director's report "Double Standards in Australian Family Policy" by Don Edgar. It asks for government support for families in the form of programs and funding, not just rhetoric. The next article, "IFS Research", also by Don Edgar, details the past, current and future research of the…