Definition of Divorce Rate
(noun) The number of divorces a year per 1000 people over a given population.
Divorce Rate Pronunciation
Syllabification: di·vorce rate
Audio Pronunciation
International Phonetic Alphabet
- American English – /dɪˈvɔrs reɪt/
- British English – /dɪˈvɔːs reɪt/
Usage Notes
- Plural: divorce rates
- Variant spelling: divorce-rate
- The divorce rate is one of several rates called social statistics studied by sociologists in addition to the birth rate, fertility rate, and mortality rate.
Additional Information
- Family and Kinship Resources – Books, Journals, and Helpful Links
- Quantitative Research Resources – Books, Journals, and Helpful Links
- Word origin of “divorce” and “rate” – Online Etymology Dictionary: etymonline.com
- Amato, Paul R., and Jacob Cheadle. 2005. “The Long Reach of Divorce: Divorce and Child Well-being across Three Generations.” Journal of Marriage and Family 67(1):191–206. doi:10.1111/j.0022-2445.2005.00014.x.
- Coltrane, Scott. 2004. Families and Society: Classic and Contemporary Readings. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth.
- Davis, Kingsley. 1984. “Wives and Work: The Sex Role Revolution and its Consequences.” Population and Development Review 10(3):397–417. doi:10.2307/1973512.
- Emery, Robert E. 2013. Cultural Sociology of Divorce: An Encyclopedia. Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE Reference.
- Hackstaff, Karla B. 1999. Marriage in a Culture of Divorce. Philadelphia: Temple University Press.
- Phillips, Roderick. 1988. Putting Asunder: A History of Divorce in Western Society. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
- Wallerstein, Judith S., Julia Lewis, and Sandra Blakeslee. 2000. The Unexpected Legacy of Divorce: A 25 Year Landmark Study. New York: Hyperion.
- Wang, Hongyu, and Paul R. Amato. 2000. “Predictors of Divorce Adjustment: Stressors, Resources, and Definitions.” Journal of Marriage and the Family 62(3):655–68. doi:10.1111/j.1741-3737.2000.00655.x.
- Yodanis, Carrie. 2005. “Divorce Culture and Marital Gender Equality: A Cross-national Study.” Gender & Society 19(5):644–59. doi:10.1177/0891243205278166.
Related Terms
- divorce
- divorce probability
- divorced family
- marriage
- remarriage
- separation
- social statistics
- systematic
- theory
Works Consulted
Brym, Robert J., and John Lie. 2007. Sociology: Your Compass for a New World. 3rd ed. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth.
Henslin, James M. 2012. Sociology: A Down-to-Earth Approach. 10th ed. Boston: Allyn & Bacon.
Marsh, Ian, and Mike Keating, eds. 2006. Sociology: Making Sense of Society. 3rd ed. Harlow, England: Pearson Education.
Shepard, Jon M. 2010. Sociology. 11th ed. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth.
Shepard, Jon M., and Robert W. Greene. 2003. Sociology and You. New York: Glencoe.
Thompson, William E., and Joseph V. Hickey. 2012. Society in Focus: An Introduction to Sociology. 7th ed. Boston: Allyn & Bacon.
Wikipedia contributors. (N.d.) Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Wikimedia Foundation. (https://en.wikipedia.org/).
Cite the Definition of Divorce Rate
ASA – American Sociological Association (5th edition)
Bell, Kenton, ed. 2014. “divorce rate.” In Open Education Sociology Dictionary. Retrieved June 5, 2023 (https://sociologydictionary.org/divorce-rate/).
APA – American Psychological Association (6th edition)
divorce rate. (2014). In K. Bell (Ed.), Open education sociology dictionary. Retrieved from https://sociologydictionary.org/divorce-rate/
Chicago/Turabian: Author-Date – Chicago Manual of Style (16th edition)
Bell, Kenton, ed. 2014. “divorce rate.” In Open Education Sociology Dictionary. Accessed June 5, 2023. https://sociologydictionary.org/divorce-rate/.
MLA – Modern Language Association (7th edition)
“divorce rate.” Open Education Sociology Dictionary. Ed. Kenton Bell. 2014. Web. 5 Jun. 2023. <https://sociologydictionary.org/divorce-rate/>.