People’s accounts of divorce also varied with age at marriage, duration
of marriage, and having children. For example, references to growing
apart were more common among individuals who had married early and
who had been married for longer periods. In addition, people who married
relatively early disproportionately reported problems with alcohol and
drug use. Contrary to several prior studies (Bloom et al., 1985; Goode,
1956; Kitson, 1992), this study did not find that infidelity is more often a
cause of divorce in marriages of long duration.We did find, however, that
individuals with children were more likely to report abuse and substance
use as causes of divorce. It seems likely that children increase the motivation
of spouses (primarily wives) to leave abusive or substance-dependent
622 JOURNAL OF FAMILY ISSUES / July 2003
spouses, perhaps to protect the children. In general, these results support
the utility of adopting a life course perspective in understanding people’s
reasons for divorce.