At the end of the year, it’s easy to look back at what got people talking. There were a number of interesting divorce-related studies released in 2011, and the Huffington Post takes a look at some of the more surprising ones. As you read, ask yourself which are most surprising to you.
• Women going through a divorce lose their hair more often than women who are happily married. That’s according to a study by the American Society of Plastic Surgeons. The finding may not be shocking, but the interesting thing here is that men may go through similar stress, but they don’t find it as troublesome.
• Happy teenagers divorce more often. A study released in February by the University of Cambridge looked at data over several decades. Researchers apparently used data from over 2,700 teens ages 13-15 taken from a 1946 study. Students were asked their happiness level at that time, and then were contacted again at ages 36, 43 and 53, respectively. Teenagers who had a higher happiness rating had higher divorce rates later in life.
• Men who are unemployed are far more likely than unemployed women to initiate divorce. The study, released in June by Ohio State University, shows yet another subtle gender difference.
• The parents of twins are slightly more likely to split up than other parents. While the difference is small, at only about 1 percent, researchers believe the discrepancy lies with the financial and emotional stress of parenting two babies at once.
• Women who lost their virginity at a young age are more likely to divorce after 10 years of marriage. Of women surveyed in a University of Iowa study, those who were sexually active before age 16 were more likely to divorce, and 47 percent of them did so after a decade of marriage.
Source: Huffington Post, “Divorce Research 2011: Top 11 findings of the year,” Ashley Reich, Nov. 30, 2011