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Are Pennsylvania Facebook users getting more divorces?

On Behalf of | Jul 18, 2014 | Firm News

Time and again, it seems like studies are finding a link between the frequency of Facebook use and the likelihood of divorce. The question is, are marital problems the cause for increased use of Facebook and social media or does an increased use of social media actually cause more divorce to occur? Considering the intense complexity of divorce and the division of assets process for the average Pennsylvania resident, this is definitely a question worth answering.

The very first divorce statistics regarding Facebook were released in 2009. Later that year, certain divorce attorneys were saying that 20 percent of divorces included issues relating to Facebook. In late 2010, one state bar association gave out guidelines on how to use evidence pulled from social media websites in family law cases.

In 2011, lawyers were blaming Facebook on a higher percentage of marriage failures. In 2012, as social media evidence became even more important in divorce matters, lawyers said that one third of their divorce cases involved some kind of evidence from social media.

Now, in 2014, social scientists are trying to determine if Facebook serves to augment marital problems. In one study published this month by the journal Computers in Human Behavior, for example, researchers say that they can see a direct correlation between Facebook use and divorce rates; however, they still do not know which predicates the other.

Regardless of how or why a divorce happens, the division of assets process, child custody decision and other concerns can be complicated to carry out. Nevertheless, it is consistently easier to carry out when a couple is able to maintain a sense of respect for one another. Divorce mediation services are one way to do that. Generally, whenever two Pennsylvania spouses can work together toward a fair and mutually beneficial settlement, the divorce will be easier and less emotionally taxing to conclude.

Source: Inquisitr, “Facebook Again Blamed For Divorces In New Study” Jul. 16, 2014

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