Social Contagion Is a Leading Cause of Divorce

Many people know at least one couple that simply doesn't get along. As much as you love them and want to spend time with them, every nerve in your body feels exposed as you prepare for an extended visit. This is because emotions are contagious – and a new study suggests that these social contagions may even contribute to your own divorce. Is it time to find new friends?

Framingham Divorce Study Spans Three Decades

After the long-term success of the Framingham Heart Study, researchers have extended their sights on deciphering the heavy statistics and causes behind the frequency of divorce in America. Will the answers ensure you’ll avoid having to consult your own Michigan divorce lawyer? That depends on your specific situation, but the results may help you avoid heading down that disastrous road.

The Pew Research Center's survey on divorce focused on thousands of married residents of Framingham, Massachusetts over a 30-year period. The Brown University research department analyzed the data from 1971 – 2001 to disclose details on marriage, remarriage, and divorce. While plenty of divorce stats were garnered from the data, the most surprising involved the effects of divorced family and friends on previously solid relationships.

How Can the Results Affect Your Macomb County, Michigan Marriage?

The study refers to degrees of separation, a theory first proposed in 1929. The concept explained how everyone on the planet was separated from each other by only six relations, thus six degrees of separation. While the theory was never proven, the recent divorce study results confirmed how degrees of separation can cause marital strife. Those closer to you play a major part in your life decisions.

Divorced couples can seriously cause you to lean toward that final event on your end. Even two degrees of separation, such as a general friend, in-law or co-worker, can cause a 33 percent increase in your chances of divorce. However, when there’s only one degree of separation between you and the divorced couple (a close friend or family member, for example), your chances of divorce increase to a whopping 75 percent. This new insight does not confirm divorce is contagious, but it does confirm that emotional states in social situations are.

Gossip spreads through a social grapevine and can create more trouble for the primary couple and their close circle of supporters. This is known as social contagion. Social therapists coined this term to explain what happens when information reaches social networks. Attitudes and opinions toward divorce can still be problematic beyond the two degrees of separation. A serious disagreement with your spouse on such a matter is often enough to get the ball rolling in the wrong direction.

There was some good news in the study, however. The further you are from the epicenter, the less damage is done. The study also highlighted results that relationships as close as three degrees in separation from the divorced couple had no effect on others. This includes friends of friends, family members of family members, and so on.

There is no guarantee that you will catch the divorce virus from close friends or loved ones who have recently divorced. Simple steps on your part, such as avoiding them as a couple while they’re arguing, refusing to associate their problems with yours, or making too many personal connections, can go a long way to preserving your own marriage.

If you've been infected with the divorce contagion, contact your Michigan divorce attorney immediately.

Femminineo Attorneys
Michigan Divorce Help
110 S Main St #200
Mt Clemens, MI 48043
United States
(586) 954-9500
http://www.michigandivorcehelp.com/