Americans 65 and Up Defy Divorce Decline as Nearly 40% of Splits Hit Over-50s
Updated
Updated · The New York Times · Jun 22
Americans 65 and Up Defy Divorce Decline as Nearly 40% of Splits Hit Over-50s
1 articles · Updated · The New York Times · Jun 22
Summary
Divorce rates among Americans 65 and older remain elevated even as divorce has been falling across most other age groups, making older adults the main exception to the broader decline.
Nearly 40% of U.S. divorces now involve people 50 and older, after so-called gray divorce rates doubled between 1990 and 2010 and then stabilized after the pandemic.
Many of those breakups stem from "empty-shell marriages"—long unions that function more like roommate or co-parenting arrangements after children leave home—rather than a single acute rupture.
Longer life expectancy and a growing reluctance among baby boomers and some Gen Xers to spend another 20 to 40 years in unfulfilling marriages are helping keep late-life divorce rates high.