Dissolution of Relationships

Dissolution of Relationships

1. Rate of divorce

   • Why has it increased?
     • Unrealistic expectations
     • Women working
     • Changing gender roles
     • Individualism
     • Cohabitation

2. Predictors of divorce

   • Barrier Model
     • Attraction
     • Alternatives
     • Barriers
   • Vulnerability stress adaptation model
     • Enduring vulnerabilities
     • Stressful events
     • Stress spillover
   • PAIR projects
     • Processes of Adaptation in Intimate Relationships
     • Enduring dynamics model
       • Spouses bring to their marriage problems, incompatibilities, and enduring vulnerabilities
     • Emergent distress model
       • Couples begin to fall into a rut of increasing conflict and negativity that wasn’t there when the marriage began
     • Disillusionment model
       • Couples begin their marriage with romanticized and unrealistically positive views, and eventually stop working as hard to please each other and become overall less satisfied 
   • Early Years of Marriage project
     • The social context in which couples conduct their relationships can have substantial effects on the outcomes they encounter 
   • Perceptions
     • Cultural
     • Personal
     • Relational

3. Breaking up

   • Premarital
     • Direct vs. indirect
     • Other vs. self oriented
     • Gradual vs. sudden onset
     • Individual vs. shared desire
     • Rapid vs. protracted nature of exit
     • Presence vs. absence of repair
   • Steps to divorce
     • 1. Personal phase
       • A partner grows dissatisfied
     • 2. Dyadic phase
       • The unhappy partner reveals his/her discontent 
     • 3. Social phase
       • The partners publicize their distress and seek social support from friends and family 
     • 4. Grave dressing phase
       • Mourning decreases, and the partners start to get over their loss 
     • 5. Resurrection phase
       • The ex-partners re-enter social life as singles, learn from their experiences, etc. 

4. Aftermath

   • Adjustment
   • Social networks
   • Economic resources
   • Post-dissolution relationship