The divorce rate in the US is falling, thanks to — millennials?
Sep 26, 2018, 4:01 PM | Updated: 9:24 pm
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PHOENIX — The U.S. divorce rate has dropped by 18 percent from 2008 to 2016, according to a recent analysis from University of Maryland sociology professor Philip Cohen.
The analysis shows millennials are being pickier and holding off on heading to the chapel until they get their careers established and their finances in order.
Dr. Melissa Estavillo, a couples counselor with Biltmore Psychology and Counseling, told KTAR News 92.3 FM, “I have found that millennials are not as worried about the stigma of couples counseling.
“They don’t feel like they have to be 20 years married or have had to go through something significant in their relationship to seek out resources or help.”
In true millennial fashion, Estavillo believes younger married couples are quicker to reach out and learn.
“If there’s a problem, [millennials] are like — well, just like anything else in life, we will go to the internet, research it and if there is an expert, we will utilize that expert to fix something,” Estavillo added.
Cohen’s analysis indicated one of the reasons for the decline in divorce is that the married population is getting older and more highly educated.
The older someone gets married, Estavillo theorized, the more aware they are to the decisions they are making in life.
“Our frontal lobes aren’t fully developed until we are 25,” she said.
“That [frontal lobe] is the most rational, cognitive and sophisticated parts of our brain.”
But that’s not to say that if you get married before 25, you are making a bad decision — however, you may not be fully aware of some of the things you find important in life.
Millennials also tend to be conscious to avoid making the same mistakes as their parents.
“I think because so many millennials have had parents that have gone through divorce, many of them come in saying, ‘I want to be different,'” she said.
“I see patients coming in and wanting to do things different than their parents in terms of their job or career and wanting to approach marriage in a different way as well.”