Why is the divorce rate so high now

The core reasons for the increase in modern divorce rates are closely related to social structural changes, individual consciousness awakening, and the transformation of marriage functions. There are mainly five factors: increased economic independence, diversified marriage concepts, imbalanced distribution of family responsibilities, influence of social media, and simplified legal procedures.

1. Increased Economic Independence

With the improvement of women's education level and career development opportunities, the economic dependence relationship in traditional marriage is broken. The popularization of the dual income family model enables individuals to maintain their livelihood even after leaving marriage, while economic autonomy weakens the necessity of maintaining low-quality marriages. Some studies have shown that couples with equal economic status are more likely to have conflicts due to differences in life goals.

2. Diversified views on marriage

The degree of stigmatization of divorce in contemporary society has decreased, and individual happiness has replaced traditional values that are fixed in one life. More and more people view marriage as a temporary life experience rather than a lifelong contract, and the psychological cost of choosing to terminate a relationship significantly decreases when emotional needs are not met. Alternative forms such as non marital cohabitation also reduce the caution of entering into marriage.

3. Unbalanced distribution of family responsibilities

The unequal distribution of household chores and childcare responsibilities in dual income families continues to cause conflicts. While women undertake career development, they still generally face expectations for traditional family roles, which can lead to chronic emotional exhaustion due to the overload of these roles. About 30% of divorce lawsuits directly mention disputes over household chores.

4. The Influence of Social Media

Social media has expanded the scope of interpersonal comparison, and virtual social interaction may not only expose existing marital deficiencies, but also provide convenient conditions for extramarital emotional connections. The idealized image of marriage displayed on the internet can exacerbate the sense of reality gap, and some couples are more likely to develop alternative fantasies when they have trivial conflicts.

5. Simplification of Legal Procedures

The convenience of divorce registration procedures and the limitations of the cooling off period system objectively lower the operational threshold for divorce. The popularization of the principle of no fault divorce has made emotional breakdown a sufficient reason, and procedures such as property division and custody determination in divorce proceedings are also becoming standardized. Maintaining marital stability requires the establishment of a dynamic balance mechanism. Both spouses can clarify their changing needs through regular emotional communication, develop flexible household division plans, and seek professional marriage counseling when necessary. At the societal level, parenting support policies should be improved, and the media should avoid excessively exaggerating marriage perfectionism. Legal procedures can strengthen pre intervention in marriage education while ensuring divorce freedom. A healthy marriage relationship should have both emotional inclusiveness and personal growth space.