The Dallas-based family lawyers at Balekian Hayes, PLLC, are diving into the history behind why women are more inclined to initiate divorce than men. According to a recent study, nearly 70 percent of divorces are initiated by women. This percentage is much higher for college-educated women, who account for almost 90 percent of divorces. According to Kris Balekian Hayes, managing partner at Balekian Hayes, PLLC, the following reasons are why women are more inclined to initiate divorce more than men.
Why Women Initiate Divorce More Often Than Men
Sacrifice
Women are more likely to ignore their feelings and desires for the betterment of their families. Once that becomes the norm, husbands often don’t notice there is a problem because their wife isn’t complaining about it anymore. Oftentimes, women will wait until their kids are grown, and their husbands are blind-sided when their wives ask for a divorce.
Independence
The most common reason women seek a divorce stems from a loss of independence and controlling husbands. Women often find themselves dissatisfied with their relationship because of archaic expectations of marriage that limit their autonomy. With women becoming more prevalent in the workforce, they no longer need to rely on men to meet their needs and are free to file for divorce.
Infidelity
Men have a higher rate of infidelity in marriage, resulting in more women than men filing for divorce.
Advice from other women
In the old days, it made a difference who filed first. Today that is not as true. Girlfriends who may have experience with their own divorce would advise that you file first; thus, women do. Men are less likely to discuss their marriage differences with their friends or seek advice from peers.
Division of household labor
The division of household work is one area in marriages that has improved but hasn’t evolved to meet modern expectations. Today, more married men contribute to household tasks than ever before. Still, the division of labor isn’t equal, especially for working mothers, who find themselves doing most of the work at home. Researchers have found that women annoyed by doing more of the housework are 69 percent more likely to file for divorce.
Courtship ends
In the courtship phase of a relationship, men often work very hard to win the love and affection of their future wives. But for many men, once they become married, they often stop trying to court their wives. However, some women may expect their husbands to continue courting them throughout their marriage. Once some women realize that their husbands have stopped doing all the things they once did and reality begins to sink in, some women may realize that the idealized expectations of what married life should be like are not there.
Emotional & physical abuse
Many women initiate divorce in marriages because of physical and emotional abuse. The signs of abuse might not have shown while they were dating but appear or become worse after marriage. Abuse might include husbands restricting their wife’s access to their friends and family, limiting the amount of quality time spent together unless it is time to initiate sex, or gaslighting, a form of manipulation whereby a person makes their partner question their ability to trust themselves and their perception of reality. From physically violating their wives or emotional abuse, women file for divorce so they can escape this life.
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