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Unreasonable Behavior Overtakes Infidelity As Grounds For Divorce [Study]

Unreasonable BehaviorUnreasonable behavior has overtaken marital infidelity as a primary cause of divorce, according to a new study out of the UK.

The study, conducted by Co-operative Legal Services, looked at more than 5 million divorce cases in the United Kingdom dating back to the 1970s and found that cheating was less of a motivator to file for divorce than it was close to 40 years ago.

The actual numbers: 29 percent of divorces were caused by infidelity in the ‘70s, while only 15 percent of cases today make the same claim. Incidents of unreasonable behavior have gone from 28 percent to 47 percent over the same period of time.

What Is Unreasonable Behavior? 

These odd behaviors could be anything from “an unsociable husband making his wife feel guilty when she wanted to go out with her friends” to “a cross-dressing husband who decided to have a sex change, and a spouse withdrawing all the family savings,” the Guardian noted.

Co-operative Legal Services officially defined “unreasonable behavior” as “when the Respondent’s behavior supports a claim that the Petitioner cannot reasonably be expected to live with them.”

“It depends on the particular facts and circumstances of each case,” the website states. “Examples of unreasonable behavior the court would consider include physical violence, verbal abuse, demanding sexual relations too frequently or denying them all together, cruelty, and intimate relationships with people of the same or opposite sex, even if they don’t actually include intercourse.”

Our Personal Experience

In our own personal experience as a do it yourself divorce service, it’s hard to cut through to the root of domestic divorce causes. The “no-fault” nature of many states throughout the US allows many petitioners and respondents to call it quits without citing a specific reason, though whether fault is stated explicitly or not, something has generally occurred to make spouses feel their marriages have become irreconcilable.

That being said, we do notice certain trends in who is initiating a DIY divorce action as well as characteristics common to filers. One of the most consistent for us has been the fact that most filers are women (63 percent) who earn close to $10k more per year than their husbands.

If you’ve thought about getting a divorce or have just gone through the proceedings, did you have an underlying reason that was more in line with infidelity or unreasonable behavior? Share your experiences with us in the comments section.

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