Baby Boomers Leading in ‘Silver Divorces’

Demographers are beginning to notice a sharp spike in “silver divorces,” or divorces among the 50-and-older crowd. According an analysis from the National Center for Family and Marriage Research at Bowling Green State University, the divorce rate within that demographic more than doubled between 1990 and 2010. In 1990, about one in 10 divorces were carried out by persons age 50 and older; by 2010, the rate had jumped to one in four.

Sociologists conducting the analysis expressed surprise at these findings, since past research has shown that divorce rates tend to decline with age. Studies conducted elsewhere have confirmed this new trend, showing that although divorce rates have dropped or remained static for other age groups, it has continued to rise for older couples.

The reasons for divorcing later in life are varied, but researchers have theorized that members of the baby boomer generation generally have a different mindset than the generations before them. Longer life expectancy, coupled with the growing acceptance of divorce, has created a cultural shift in behavior. Baby boomers are also more likely than previous generations to remarry, and these marriages are more than twice as likely to end in divorce.

Sociologists have expressed concern about rising divorce rates amongst the baby boomer generation, as poverty rates among unmarried seniors are significantly higher than those among married seniors. For this reason, it’s especially important that divorcing couples within the 50-and-older demographic take extra care to work with a Fort Lauderdale divorce attorney who will fight for all of the assets and benefits they deserve.