Denver, Colo., Sep 28, 2010 / 03:57 am
Earlier this year, a psychological journal published a groundbreaking study on possible links between divorce rates and various careers and occupations. The survey by professors Shawn McCoy and Michael Aamodt was among the first to break down divorce statistics in 449 different fields. Two notable Catholic psychologists spoke to CNA about what the findings could mean, and how job stress can affect family life.
The study, published in the Journal of Police and Criminal Psychology, found that among some performing artists, especially dancers and choreographers, rates of divorce were highest at almost 45 percent. Dr. Richard Fitzgibbons, director of the Institute for Marital Healing, responded that he was not surprised by the high rates of divorce in the performing arts. While not criticizing individual artists, he noted that “such careers tend to foster selfishness … the major enemy of marital love.”
Low divorce rates – around 5 to 6 percent - were reported for optometrists and podiatrists. But members of many other types of medical “caregiving” professions, such as nurses and home health aides, were among the likeliest to divorce, ranking alongside bartenders and casino workers.
Fitzgibbons noted that women, who become medical caregivers more often than men, initiate two-thirds of all divorces. But he also pointed to other factors which could create marital difficulty for both men and women in caregiving and other service industries, such as job stress and unusual hours.