She Left, He Left: How Employment and Satisfaction Affect Women’s and Men’s Decisions to Leave Marriages 1

Studies examining determinants of divorce have largely ignored differences between factors that elevate wives’ and husbands’ initiation of divorce. The authors use longitudinal data and a latent class model embedded in a competing-risks event history model to assess distinct predictors of wives and husbands leaving marriages. They find that when men are not employed, either spouse is more likely to leave. When wives report better-than-average marital satisfaction, their employment affects neither spouse’s exit. However, when wives report below-average marital satisfaction, their employment makes it more likely they will leave. The authors’ findings suggest that theories of divorce require “gendering” to reflect asymmetric gender change.