It may take two people to get married, but it only takes one person to get divorced. One spouse can file for divorce, and the other has a chance to respond. Even if they don’t respond, the divorce can still be carried out.
This may make you wonder which spouse is most likely to take that step and file for divorce. In heterosexual marriages, do men or women do that more often?
The 70-30 split
Divorce filings are certainly not even, when sorted by gender. Only about 30% of them are initiated by men. The other 70% are filed by women. This clearly demonstrates that it’s far more likely that women will want to end their relationships than men, even if these men do go along with it once the process has begun.
There are a lot of different reasons why this happens. Some have suggested that women may feel held back in certain marriages and want to get out on their own, whereas men may not feel the same sort of repression. Others have said that women simply have more flexibility now. In the past, women may not have filed for divorce because they depended on their husbands for their income. Now that women are far more involved in the workforce than they were 50 years ago, things have changed and they can pursue the outcomes that they want.
Are you facing divorce?
If your spouse has decided to file for divorce, you may be surprised or you may have seen it coming. Either way, make sure that you take the time to look into all of the proper legal steps.