Aspects and reasons for family diversity in the UK

• Marriage has declined since the 1970s.
• A large proportion of marriages have been remarriages.
• It is becoming a norm to have a series of marriages/long-term relationships in their lifetime - serial monogamy.

Statistics

ONS:

• Marriages in 1940 - 470,549, marriages in 2012 - 262,240. (even though the population is bigger).
• Remarriges in 1940 - 9%, remarriages in2012 - 34%. (more divorces rather than widowed).
• Civil ceremonies in 2012 - 70%. (overtaking religious ceremonies).
• People born in 1930 married by age 40 - Men: 90% Women: 94%.
• People born in 1970 married by age 40 - Men: 63% Women: 71%.
• Mean age for marriage in 1972 - Men: 28.8 years Women: 26.2 years.
• Mean age for marriage in 2012 - 36.5 years Women 34.0 years.

• Evidence suggests that cohabitiation was not uncommon in past centuries, esp. in the lower class.
• Since the 1970s, people cohabiting has increased.

Statistics

ONS:

• People aged 16+ cohabiting in 1996 - 6.5% , in 2012 - 11.7%. (fastest-growing family type).
• 39% cohabiting couples had dependent children, compared with 38% married children.
• In 2012 there were 2,893,000 cohabiting heterosexual couples and 69,000 cohabiting homosexual.

Boujouan and Bhrolchain:

• Cohabitation before marriage is the norm - 87% in 2004-7 and 30% 1980-4.
• Couples tend to live together for longer prior marriage - 1980s >2yrs and 2004-7 around 4yrs.

• Used to be negative: 'old maid' 'spinster' (applied to older women).

• Being single is seen as more glamourous within the media - Sex and the City, Friends etc.

• Creative singlehood - choosing to be single rather than not finding a partner.

• Hall et al. - many single people found freedom in being solo and chose to focus on their careers rather than maintaining long-term relationships.

• Heath - 'kippers' - young people who choose to live with their parents to save money after completing their education.

Changing social attitudes

• Up until 1960s, there was social pressure for most couples to marry before setting up a home together.
• If pregnancy happened outside of marriage, the mother was expected to either marry the father or give the baby up for adoption.
• Cohabitation or sex outside of marriage has become more socially acceptable.

Park et al.

• In 1989, 71% agreed with the statement that "People who want to have children ought to get married", but in 2012 only 42% believed this.
• In 2012,  75% believed that sex before marriage was 'rarely wrong' or 'not wrong at all'.

The decline in family values

• The New Right believe that there has been a weakening in traditional family values because of the declining popularity of marriage.

• They believe that marriage is the basis of stable family life and alternatives like cohabitation are bad because they are more likely to break up.

• Morgan argues that governements have not given enough support to marriage in terms of tax and the benefit system for couples bringing up children.

• This means that a couple may not get married because they could get more benefits that way.

Individualisation

• Individuals are no longer bound by traditional social norms and loyalty to families.
• They seek relationships and lifestyes that fulful their needs as individuals.
• Many therefore seek alternatives to marriage - LATs, singlehood, cohabitation etc.
• Giddens argues that in late modernity, there has been a transformation of intimacy:
  - individuals no longer seek the traditional view of romance that is assosiated with love.
  - there has been an influence on confluent love: where individuals enter more temporary and fragile intimat relationships.

Jamieson et al. 

• Most cohabiting couples strongly stressed their committment.
• Some cohabiting couples had a 'try-and-see' method which was not as committed.
• Still saw marriage as 'good for the children'.
• Sociologists suggested that the rise of cohabitiation does not represent a turning away from committment, but is simply an alternate choice than marriage.

The changing role of women

• Many feminists see marriage a patriarchal institution, as for centuries it meant the woman passing the control of her father to her husband.

• Greer (radical feminist) sees the decline in marriage as a positive development because women are no longer accepting oppression by men.
• Women now have mroe options because they are better educated and have more job opportunities.
• Sharpe - in 1976 teen girl's priorities were love, marriage, husbands and children but in 1996 priorities were education, careers and financial independence from men.
• There is still a search for 'finding Mr. Right'. - Langford found that many women feared being alone and wanted to be wanted.

The continuing importance of marriage

• Even though marriage is declining, it is still seen as important for many people.
• People may be delaying marriage rather than rejecting it.
• As women are becoming more work-centered, they might wait until they're in their 30s to think about marriage.
• Many people who cohabit go on to marry.
• In 2012, 1/3 of marriages were remarriages, meaning that the high levels of divorce have not stopped people from getting marriage again.
• Families headed by married couples is still the most common family type, as 12.2 million were married-couple families.

Types of marital breakdown

• Divorce is the legal ending of a marriage.

• A marriage can breakdown without resulting in divorce.
• We can't know how many marriages in the past broke down, because it used to be very difficult to get a divorce.
• Many unhappy married couples would have remained in 'empty shell' marriages, staying together for outward appearances.
• Divorce has increased from the late 20th century, but people are more likely to stay married than get a divorce if their marriage breaks down.

• In 1960, there were 28,868 divorces in England and Wales.

• In 1993, there were 165,018.

• In 2012, there were 118,140.

• 42% of current marriages will end in divorce.

1857 Matrimonial Causes Act

• Set up civil divorce courts with grounds of - adultery, cruelty and desertion.
• Divorce was still frowned upon and was difficult for women to win.
• Women didnt't gain the frounds of adultery until 1923.

1937 Matrimonial Causes Act

• Extended the grounds to drunkeness and insanity.

1949 Legal Aid and Advice Act

• This provided legal fees for those who could not afford them.

1969 Divorce Reform Act

• Couples only had to show that their marriage had broke down and could not be fixed.
• Couple had to be separated for at least two years.
• Made divorce accessible to everyone.

1984 Matrimonial Proceedings Act

• Reduced the amount of time that a couple had to be married before they could petition for a divorce from three years to one year.

1996 Family Law Act

• Decreased the amount of time a couple had to be married from 1 year to 18 months.
• Introduced a 'period of reflection' with compulsory marriage counselling.
• This was an attempt from the government to reduce couples applying for divorce.

2011 Practice DIrection 3A

• Divorcing couples had to have a meeting with their solicitors where they attempt to resolve disputes before they were allowed to go to court.

The law