Post by tcrashfx on May 10, 2007 19:49:11 GMT -5
May 10 02:43 PM US/Eastern
By DAVID CRARY
AP National Writer
By DAVID CRARY
AP National Writer
NEW YORK (AP) - By the numbers, divorce just isn't what it used to be.
Despite the common notion that America remains plagued by a divorce epidemic, the national per capita divorce rate has declined steadily since its peak in 1981 and is now at its lowest level since 1970.
Yet Americans aren't necessarily making better choices about their long-term relationships. Even those who study marriage and work to make it more successful can't decide whether the trend is grounds for celebration or cynicism.
Some experts say relationships are as unstable as ever—and divorces are down primarily because more couples live together without marrying. Other researchers have documented what they call "the divorce divide," contending that divorce rates are indeed falling substantively among college-educated couples but not among less- affluent, less-educated couples.
Yea, but I think the domestic homicide rate has increased proportionally during the same time frame.