Keywords

assets, commitment, divorce, gender, marital satisfaction

Abstract

Scholars identified a negative relationship between assets and divorce decades ago, but the mechanisms behind this relationship remain unknown. Using data from the National Survey of Families and Households (N = 4,721 couples), this study compared three mechanisms that might link assets and divorce. Non-proportional Cox hazard models indicated that two of the three mechanisms explained the relationship between assets and divorce. Wives’ marital satisfaction and their perceptions of their hypothetical post-divorce standard of living completely mediated the relationship between assets and divorce. The relationship between assets and divorce was not related to husbands’ characteristics.

Original Publication Citation

Dew, J. P. (2009). The gendered meanings of assets for divorce. Journal of Family and Economic Issues, 30, 20–31.