Working women more likely to seek divorce Research Paper

Working women more likely to seek divorce - Research Paper Example me than their husbands will be less tolerant to low-quality marriage and, therefore, the divorce rates in this section of the society would be higher. Various possible reasons for divorce like age, employment status, education level, wage and salary have been taken into consideration for the purpose of the study. Since the dependent variable in the study is dichotomous, probit regression has been used. The odds ratio has been calculated and analyzed for each of the stated variables. Since time immemorial, the man of the house has been considered as the bread earner for the family while the woman has been assigned the task of managing the household chores. However, over the years there has been a definite rise in the number of women constituting the country’s labor force. There are two schools of thought women’s participation in the workforce. While one view, backed by empirical studies, suggests that this increased participation of women in workforce has led to increase in divorce rates, the other school of thought opines that there is no material impact on divorce rates by such participation. People who subscribe to the latter view contend that women adjust their working hours and balance their personal and professional lives to avoid incidence of divorce. The study aims to check if working women who have an income equivalent or more than their husbands’ tend to become so broadminded that they shun a low-quality marriage. Thus, the divorce rates in this section would be higher. There is empirical evidence that suggests that once a woman leaves the threshold of the house and ventures out to work, it reduces the efficiency on the household front. At the same time, her employment bestows on her financial independence (Becker 1981). This study established that if the woman felt that the time spent by her at home was practically of no value, she would go in for a job. Becker, in his study, compared the age and wage rate profiles of men and women and carried