Synonyms
Marital and/or Relationship Dissolution and/or Termination
Introduction
Issues related to divorce in couple and family therapy are often challenging and complex and are increasingly common presenting problems for clients. According to a national survey, the divorce rate remains around 50 % (Copen et al. 2012). Indeed, a legally married, two-parent household with children is no longer representative of the typical American family.
Theoretical Context for Concept
Divorce and the transitions and reorganization of family structure that follows have become a normative experience. In the United States, the term “divorce” is used to refer to the termination of legal marriages, but it can also apply to the dissolution of long-term committed relationships. This is of particular importance as more couples are deciding to cohabitate as an alternative to marriage, not as a precursor to it (Cherlin 2004). Therefore, while the legal aspects of divorce are unique to marriages, the...
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Wagner, A.C., Diamond, R.M. (2019). Divorce in Couple and Family Therapy. In: Lebow, J.L., Chambers, A.L., Breunlin, D.C. (eds) Encyclopedia of Couple and Family Therapy. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-49425-8_448
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-49425-8_448
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