KEY POINTS:
In an opinion column Tracey Barnett put forward the proposition that divorce is some sort of biological evolutionary imperative, beneficial to the human species.
If this is so, then why can I name at least 30 independent published studies that show marriage is more beneficial to individuals, families and societies than divorce?
Among other things, these studies show that married men are more likely to have good relationships with their kids, that divorced women and their children are more likely to suffer poverty, and that divorce increases the likelihood of educational failure for children.
Charles Darwin, the father of modern evolutionary science, was very clear that biological evolution was a process of change which led to the physical development and advancement of a species. So what do these studies show us about the effects of divorce on the physical wellbeing of human beings?
According to the longitudinal research of Jane Mauldon, divorce increases the likelihood of health problems in children, and this trend was consistent no matter which socio-economic grouping was studied. At least three different and independent studies by Ollie Lundberg, J. E. Schwartz et al, and Joan S. Tucker et al, found children of divorced parents had a decreased life expectancy.
The research of Lee A. Lillard and Linda J. Waite found that married women and men live longer than divorced men and women, regardless of race, income or family background.
Then there are the mental health risks that divorce exposes people to, with studies showing there appears to be a correlation between divorce and increased rates of mental illness. Several studies have also shown that divorce appears to significantly increase the risk of suicide among parents and children.
Studies also reveal that infant mortality is considerably lower if babies are born to married parents. Considering successful propagation of the species is one of the most important tenets of evolutionary advancement, then surely this flies in the face of the notion that marriage and evolutionary progress are in opposition.
Surely if we are going to suggest that divorce is some sort of evolutionary imperative that benefits the human species, then the research should support such a hypothesis. Yet it clearly does not.
So why do the United Nations figures show that many marriages end in divorce after just four years? Perhaps it is because the first four years are some of the hardest.
Or maybe many people today enter marriage with an unrealistic version of marriage, and when the going gets tough it is simply easier to walk away.
Or maybe it is because we don't provide married couples with the practical and educational resources they need to navigate their relationship and communication difficulties.
And what of the supposed practices of the "noble savage" Tracey Barnett refers to? Our "noble and enlightened" ancestors regularly practised child sacrifice, held strange superstitions and thought women deserved fewer rights than cattle.
All of which leaves me at a loss to understand why some people think they should be considered a reliable role model for modern social behaviour.
* Brendan Malone is media and education officer for Family Life International New Zealand, a Catholic organisation that educates and advocates for marriage, family and pro-life issues. He is married and has a daughter.
