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An investigation of the initiator's marital dissolution decision-making process in long-term marriages
Much research exists on the process of marital dissolution once the decision to end a marriage has been made as well as the aftermath of divorce and its short- and long-term effects on individuals and families, but little research has been done on the period of time when a spouse becomes uncomfortable in a marriage and decision-making process that ultimately leads to the action of ending the marriage. Even less research exists concerning the phenomenon of the marital dissolution decision-making process in long-term marriages of at least ten years or longer duration. This study seeks to contribute to this void in the research literature. Although more men and women are making the marital dissolution decision than ever before, numbers and statistics do not reflect the complicated and agonizing components that come together to tip the scale in favor of ending a marriage. In this study, 11 male and female initiators of the marital dissolution decision-making process, who had been in marriages of 10 years or longer, participated in open-ended interviews describing how they made the decision to end their marriages. Phenomenological analysis identified three major themes and 44 subthemes that emerged from the interview data, suggesting that the decision-making process leading to marital dissolution of long-term marriages is a highly complex process. The results of the study may help Marriage and Family Therapists work with clients who are unknowingly on the path that can lead to divorce or who may be in the midst of the decision-making process, thus enabling these couples and individuals to stop the process and save the marriage. Moreover, this information may also be useful to those individuals who, having been left by initiators, develop a better understanding of the finality of the decision so that they may move forward in their lives.
- "Much research exists on the process of marital dissolution once the decision to end a marriage has been made as well as the aftermath of divorce and its short- and long-term effects on individuals and families, but little research has been done on the period of time when a spouse becomes uncomfortable in a marriage and decision-making process that ultimately leads to the action of ending the marriage. Even less research exists concerning the phenomenon of the marital dissolution decision-making process in long-term marriages of at least ten years or longer duration. This study seeks to contribute to this void in the research literature. Although more men and women are making the marital dissolution decision than ever before, numbers and statistics do not reflect the complicated and agonizing components that come together to tip the scale in favor of ending a marriage. In this study, 11 male and female initiators of the marital dissolution decision-making process, who had been in marriages of 10 years or longer, participated in open-ended interviews describing how they made the decision to end their marriages. Phenomenological analysis identified three major themes and 44 subthemes that emerged from the interview data, suggesting that the decision-making process leading to marital dissolution of long-term marriages is a highly complex process. The results of the study may help Marriage and Family Therapists work with clients who are unknowingly on the path that can lead to divorce or who may be in the midst of the decision-making process, thus enabling these couples and individuals to stop the process and save the marriage. Moreover, this information may also be useful to those individuals who, having been left by initiators, develop a better understanding of the finality of the decision so that they may move forward in their lives."@en
- "An investigation of the initiator's marital dissolution decision-making process in long-term marriages"@en