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The New - Divorce rates among older adults have risen sharply over the past few decades ...

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Rising "grey divorce" rates are forcing sociologists to rethink whether lifelong marriage is a social norm in terminal decline — and the theories behind why are fascinating.

Social Norm TheoryIdentity TheoryLife Course TheoryIndividualization Theory

Theory Briefing

  • Divorce rates among older adults have risen sharply over recent decades, a trend experts call 'grey divorce.'
  • Experts are actively theorizing why long-term marriages are dissolving later in life at increasing rates.
  • The trend challenges traditional social norms around lifelong partnership and raises questions about identity and autonomy in later life.