Date of Award

Summer 2010

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Arts (MA)

Department

Sociology & Criminal Justice

Program/Concentration

Applied Sociology

Committee Director

Melvina Sumter

Committee Member

Scott Maggard

Committee Member

Leon Bouvier

Call Number for Print

Special Collections LD4331.S62 D64 2010

Abstract

Prospective factors that lead to elevated divorce rates have been studied in an attempt to gauge their relative significance and overall impact. However, to date no Such factor or factors have been pin-pointed that can conclusively explain why divorce rates are so high. This article utilizes a three-model analysis that examines the effects of religion variables, as well as relevant control variables that have be found to be significantly associated with divorce rates by prior research. Thus, religion is the variable of focus for the study in relation to divorce rates. The results indicate that: 1) Catholics are less likely than both Protestants and those in the 'other' religion category to have ever been divorced or separated; 2) Respondents raised Catholic are more likely to have ever been divorced or separated than those raised Protestant or those raised in the 'other' religion category; 3) Indicators of religiosity, or how religious a respondent is, have conflicting and opposite effects on divorce rates. These results indicate that, while controlling for relevant control variables, religion does have significant effects on divorce rates. More research needs to be done in an attempt to explain the religion variable associations found in this study. The findings that Catholics are less likely to divorce, but those raised Catholic are more likely to divorce (in comparison to Protestant and 'other' religions), and also the opposing effects of the religiosity indicators on divorce rates are of particular interest for future research.

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DOI

10.25777/zzma-2643

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