Icddr, B Journal of Health, Population and Nutrition

Marital Disruption: Determinants and Consequences on the Lives of Women in a Rural Area
of Bangladesh
Author(s): Abbas Bhuiya, A. Mushtaque R. Chowdhury, Mehnaaz Momen and Mohsina
Khatun
Source: Journal of Health, Population and Nutrition, Vol. 23, No. 1 (March 2005), pp. 82-94
Published by: icddr,b
Stable URL: https://www.jstor.org/stable/23499188
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J HEALTH POPUL NUTR 2005 Mar;23(l):82-94 © 2005 ICDDR,B: Centre for Health and Population Research
ISSN 1606-0997 $ 5.00+0.20
Marital Disruption: Determinants and

Consequences on the Lives of Women in a Rural
Area of Bangladesh
Abbas Bhuiya1, A. Mushtaque R. Chowdhury2, Mehnaaz Momen3,
and Mohsina Khatun4
'Social and Behavioural Sciences Unit, ICDDR,B: Centre for Health and Population
Research, GPO Box 128, Dhaka 1000, 2BRAC, 75 Mohakhali, Dhaka 1212, Bangladesh,
3Department of Social Sciences, Texas A & M International University, Laredo, TX 78041
USA, and 4Population Studies Centre, University of Groningen, The Netherlands
ABSTRACT
This study, carried out during the second half of 1995, investigated the predisposing factors
marital disruption and its consequences on the lives of women in Matlab, a rural area of Banglad
qualitative and quantitative methods were used. Data were generated from detailed case stu
quantitative surveys of a small number of maritally-disrupted women. Additional data were
the ongoing demographic surveillance system of ICDDR,B: Centre for Health and Population
The findings revealed that divorced and abandoned women and their children were extremely vu
both socially and economically. Various factors that influence marital disruption were identified
important ones being: aspects determining the process of marriage, various family problems
fulfillment of demand for dowry, mutual distrust, extramarital relationships, quality of sexual
tion of women, and other behavioural characteristics of individuals. Level of education of the wi
an inverse relationship with the risk of divorce. Women who did not have livebirths from
pregnancy had a higher risk of divorce. The effect of pregnancy outcome was dependent on t
education of women. Illiterate women with unsuccessful pregnancy outcomes were at the high
being divorced, with the lowest risk for women with some education and a livebirth. The findin
indicate the need for broad-based social development programmes for women, especially to en
education to reduce their vulnerability to marital instability and its consequences.
Key words'. Marriage; Divorce; Pregnancy outcomes; Socioeconomic factors; Impact studies; B
INTRODUCTION The most important social status a woman atta

.. . , . . .. _ , , , „ marriage is that of a wife and a mother (4). She is groomed
Marriage is almost universal in Bangladesh. The process _ , ..... , , . . . ' , , ,
c ■ . .... . .... . , ° ... , r ... from her childhood to be a perfect wife and daughter
of marnage is still traditional, and the bnde has very lit- . . . . .
., _. . ^ . . . , in-law. With little access to education and occupation
tie participation even in choosing her partner. The patriar- , , , . , , . . , . . f ,
..... - . . . al skills and bonded by social restrictions, she has
chai social system compels a woman to move social- . , ... , .
i j u ■ ii f u . il , few opportunities to be economically productive out
ly and physically from her natal home to that of her hus- ., , r. .. ,
band, which also shifts her dependence to her husband (1-3). S,d" the fA°m walls' fcût0 pl*y }he ™lef
wife and to reproduce her husband s family line
Correspondence and reprint requests should be addressed to: (2,5,6). For many, marriage is disrupted voluntar
Dr. Abbas Bhuiya .. • , . ., TT , ... . c .
Social and Behavioural Sciences Unit 0the
ICDDR.B: Centre for Health and Population Res
GPO Box 128, Dhaka 1000 of any institutional support. In a society like Bangladesh,
Bangladesh where women in general are constrained, it is likely
Email: abbas@icddrb.org that most of those who suffer marita
Marital disruption in a rural area of Bangladesh 83
a worse condition; their children also suffer from the (MCH-FP) services since
consequences (8-12). Although knowledge about the other half receive gov
factors associated with dissolution of marriage in deve- BRAC, a national non-g
loped countries is available in the literature (13,14), duced a comprehensiv
there is a dearth of knowledge about the determinants and in some villages w
consequences of dissolution of marriage in Bangladesh. gramme of ICDDR,B. T
n , , u l. • , . the poorest of the poor, especially the women. The women
Recently, there has been a growing concern about . r A _ ... . ,.
the need for development interventions to improve the in the BRAC vll,aSes were orSamzed
condition of women. It has also been gradually ack- of f,ve' 30(1 a c°nfederat,on of small g
nowledged that a mere one-shot benefit to a target group with 20"40 female ambers, was fo
of women would, in fact, not solve their multifarious viUa8e organization. The development
problems (15). A broader understanding of the prédis- included functional and social a
posing factors that lead to such a vulnerable state and the human rights and legal awareness
process thereof is needed to design an effective interven- lopment, saving, and collateral-fr
tion. With this in view, the present paper focuses on bers. The social awareness progr
marital disruption due to divorce and abandonment, the emphasize the social structure and ro
process thereof, consequences, and predisposing factors, gender relations, family laws, and wo
and discusses the potential role of an integrated women- In weekly meetings of the members
development programme. reaffirmed. The resolutions, among others, included:
avoidance of early marriage for girls, not to take or
MATERIALS AND METHODS give dowrYin marriage, and sending children—especially
girls—to school. Details of these activities have been
Study site and population reported elsewhere (17-19). By 1996, nearly 5,000
The study area comprised 149 villages in Matlab and BRAC members had been enrolled in the study area,
Daudkandi thana (sub-district) situated 40-50 km south- and most members are now engaged in income-gene
east of Dhaka, the capital city of Bangladesh. The study rating activities undertaken with loans from BRAC. In
villages, with a population of over 200,000, have been addition to the BRAC development programmes, there
covered by the Health and Demographic Surveillance have also been activities from government departments,
System (HDSS), formerly known as Demographic Sur- such as the Bangladesh Rural Development Board. These
veillance System (DSS), of ICDDR,B: Centre for Health programmes mainly included skill-development training,
and Population Research since 1966. The area is a low- credit, and food for work (20). Other than BRAC's pro
lying deltaic plain intersected by the tidal river Gumti gramme, there had been no social development inter
and its numerous tributaries. The major modes of trans- vention in the study area with direct bearing on the
portation within the area are on foot, by boat and, in rights of women,
some cases, by small steamer or launch.
The ICDDR,B interventions in the area had impacted
As in most other parts of rural Bangladesh, most positively on health, especially of children and increased
people in Matlab are poor. Farming is their dominant the contraceptive-use rate in the area. During 1994-1995,
occupation, except in a few villages where fishing is the the total fertility rates were around 3.0 in the ICDDR.B
main means of livelihood. Female employment is vir- served area and ûnd 3.6 in the non-ICDDR,B area,
tually nil with more than 95% engaged in household The ratio of divorce to marriage was around 12% during
work. Nearly half of households are economically in 1994-1996 (21-23)
marginal situations, owning less than 50 decimals of
land and with household members selling manual labour Data and procedures
for more than 100 days a year for survival. Fifty per- ^ ^ ofda(a wer£ used for ^ These were
cent of males and 30% of females aged above six years .. , , .. , .. „ ,.
. 0 obtained from: detailed case studies of mantally-dis
can read and write (16). , ... . „
rupted women, a qu
One half of the study villages have b
intensive maternal and child health an
84 J Health Popul Nutr Mar 2005 Bhuiya A et al.
The case studies, carried out among 18 maritally-dis- out-migration, divo

rupted women in five villages adjacent to the town of dinal event history
Matlab during the first quarter of 1995, documented and out-migration,
the consequences of marital disruption on the lives of of pregnancy term
women and their children, the process of disruption of demographic infor
marriage, and the factors responsible. Detailed findings vant files of the
of these case studies have already been reported elsewhere _ „„„„ , „ , ...
/r.x t> j , . The HDSS data-collection procedures dunng the
(9). Based on these experiences, a questionnaire was , ... ,, ,
study period involved regular fortnigh
developed to collect quantitative information on the
holds to collect information on births,
process of divorce and its predisposing factors, and
and divorces, and migration, by a te
nature of vulnerability after divorce. For comparison,
workers. The system involved strict su
data were collected from maritally-disrupted and currently
work and has been known for genera
married women, which included 51 divorced, 16 sepa
graphic data in a developing-country si
rated, 12 abandoned, and 126 married women aged less
description of HDSS is available else
than 40 years at the time of the survey. For two maritally
disrupted women, approximately three married women Variables
were randomly chosen from the same village. More mar
. , ., ,. , . - , ,, , The small-scale survey included information on socio
ned cases than divorced were included to enhance the . , .,
jr ■ - , economic characteristics of the families of brides, grooms,
power of comparison as is commonly done in case-con- , , „
. * , j* , T, , , . , , ., ,, and partners at the time of marriage, process of mar
trol studies (24). The sample of married and maritally- v , . , r, ■,
,. , , , , . * , . nage, geographical proximity of households of brides
disrupted women thus obtained was homogenous in . , . , ,
r r r r and grooms, biological and physical characteristics of
terms of year of marriage: 14% of married and 12% of ° , . ... , ,. . .
. ,, ,. _ , , ,, -JJ- partners, deviant behaviour and religiosity of grooms,
mantally-disrupted women had been married during r r , . .
quality of family and reproductive life after
the last five years, and 15% of married and 13% of mari
process of marital disruption, knowledge of,
tally-disrupted women had been married for between
towards, and participation in development pro
five and ten years. The survey was carried out in seven
and the consequences of marital disruption.
purposively-selected villages around Matlab town during
the second and the third quarter of 1995. Three locally- The socioeconomic characte
recruited trained female interviewers collected data. of bride and groom measu
completed. Women were asked about the com
A list of divorced women in the study villages was
social status of the families of brides and groom
obtained from the HDSS records, which are updated
marriage. Geographical proximity of the paren
through fortnightly house-to-house visits. A list of aban
was assessed by asking whether both families w
doned and separated women was prepared in consul
the same village, same union (the lower-most
tation with members of the field staff of ICDDR,B and
trative unit), same thana, or from outside.
BRAC residing in the villages. The list was further up
dated by consulting key informants from the villages. As The biological and physical
the HDSS maintains records of formal divorces only, included skin complexion of the
abandoned women could not be identified using the and comparative height of spou
HDSS database. behaviour included such habits as gambling and addiction.
™ , , „ , . , Exposure to cultural life by the husband was assessed
The HDSS data were used for studying the socio- , ,. , „ ,■ . , ,
r by asking about the habit of watching theatre and drama,
economic and demographic correlates of divorce. All „ ,. . ., , . . _c
, , , Religiosity was assessed by regularity in performing
first marriages that took place among Muslims in the
pravers.
HDSS area during 1980-1987 and who did not migrate
out within the first six months of marriage were inclu- The issues on the process of marriage i
ded in this study. Eighty-five percent of the total in- tigation of each other's family before marr
habitants are Muslims, and the rest are Hindus. Divorce is of marriage proposal, seeing each other b
very rare among Hindus in this society. The couples and consent to marriage by bride and groom
were linked in a mainframe computer to records of deaths, cators on the process of marriage also i
such as the amount of dowry, registration of marriage, faced by women af

and amount of mohorana/kabin (contract money) for the adopted in facing t
marriage.
A stepwise proportional hazard analysis was carried
The indicators of the quality of family life included out to examine the relationship between the risk of divorce
level of acceptance of respondent by father- and mother- and the independent variables. An examination of the
in-law and husband, frequency of scolding by in-laws impact of the education of women in modifying the
and husband, and frequency of physical abuse by hus- effect of demographic factors was made by including
band. This also included information on place of stay two-way interaction terms in the model. For ease of in
during sickness of the respondent: had she been sent to terpretation, a new variable created by combining two
her parents' house? The quality of sexual life was asses- variables having statistically significant interaction was
sed by the partners' response to each other's sexual included in the model. Detailed illustration on the use
desire, opinions about sexual satisfaction, and expert- 0f proportional hazard analysis in studying dissolution
ence of any physical discomfort during sexual intercourse. of marriage can be found elsewhere (14).
The process of divorce included data on conflict of the
respondent with her in-laws and husband with reasons RESULTS
for such conflicts and how long after marriage such con
flicts began. Process of marriage
The consequences of marital disruption were assessed It was revealed f
by living arrangements after marital disruption, source of maritally-di
of family support, family maintenance support from hus- bypassing the
band, and other problems faced by the respondents. cedents of the groo
The demand for dowry by the groom o
The study of correlates of divorce included outcome
been the dominating factor in deciding
of the first pregnancy, education of woman, age of hus- ,.
, , , r , .-re , , „ dians asked for less information about the groom if less
band and wife, and age difference between spouses at , , T f , .,
., f n_ , or no dowry was involved. In most cases, the bride was
the time of marriage. Pregnancy outcome was catego- ■; , , . , ' , . , .
rized into: (a) livebirths and (b) miscairiage/abortion not or barely consulted in th
and stillbirth. Education of women was measured by slons a out 1 e mama8e
years of schooling completed in secular schools. Years The survey data support the
of schooling were categorized into three groups: no Table 1. Collection of informa
schooling, 1-5 year(s), and 6 or more years. Age of wife ancj bride's side about eac
at the time of marriage was divided into four categories: among the currently-ma
less than 16 years, 16-17 years, 18-19 years, and 20 divorced and abandoned w
years or more. Age of husband at the time of marriage pattern was also observed in
was similarly categorized into: less than 20 years, 20- and groom by the guardians
24 years, 25-29 years, and 30 years or more. Age dif- d¡ng about the maniage, a usu
ference at the time of marriage was categorized into: marriage in Bangladesh
wife younger than husband by 4 years, wife younger maixiages in which the guardi
by 5-9 years, and wife younger by 10 or more years. A seen mam partners
small number of husbands were reported to be slightly ^ current| arried ca
younger than their wives; they have been included m , , ,
\ Jr ' 3 , abandoned cases (63.3%).
the first category of age difference, as couples may not
have even been aware of it resulting in no attitudinal W
changes. For multivariate analysis, the categorized inde-
pendent variables were coded, following the deviation/
effect coding scheme (28). among the aba
that among the currently-marri
Methods of analysis
marriages in which the bride h
Data
Data obtained
obtainedfrom
fromin-c
in-depth interviews were summariz
to highlight the process of divorce, nature of problems
Marriages in which the groom was informed by his guar- Education of f

dian about the marriage without specifically asking his and groom did
approval had a lower chance of experiencing divorce or tionship with
abandonment. However, marriages that were decided by ti°n of women
grooms alone were twice as likely to end in divorce or among the ma
abandonment (Table 1). Family probIems
The registration of marriage with the government The case studies also revealed some patterns of the co
marriage registrar did not show any relationship with the texts in which the disruption of marriages took plac
outcome of marriages. The proportion of currently-mar- The contexts were: second marriage by husband, failu
Table 1. Distribution of currently-married and maritally-disrupted cases by indicators relating to process of marriag
Married cases Disrupted cases Statistical significance

Indicator
(n=126)(%) (n=79)(%) (married vs disrupted)
Antecedents
Collected by both sides 70.6 45.6 p=0.000
Collected by one side 29.4 54.4
Seeing of partners
Guardians of both sides had seen 81.7 63.3 p=0.012
Guardians of one side had seen 10.3 19.0
None had seen 8.0 17.7
Consent of bride in marriage

Yes 78.4 62.4 p=0.020
No 12.0 25.3
No reply 9.6 12.7
Consent of groom in marriage
Asked/informed 60.4 35.5 p=0.000
Groom himself decided 23.8 50.6
Not known 15.8 13.9
Registration of marriage
Yes 70.9 67.1 p=0.700
No 29.1 32.9
Cash given to groom
Yes 51.6 41.8 p=0.22
No 48.4 68.2
Materials given to groom
Yes 50.8 31.6 p=0.010
No 49.2 68.4
ried and abandoned or divorced cases was similar in the to produce children, non-fulfillment of claim for dowries,
two groups. The relationship between cash given to the and physical abuse by husband and in-laws, creating an
groom for the marriage and the chance of divorce or aban- environment in which the wife's side requested a divorce,
donment was not statistically significant. However, gift There were incidences of sexual advances to the wife by
in kind was significantly related. The proportion of family members other than her husband, and these even
marriages where materials were given to the groom was tually led to divorce. In some cases, the husband created
higher among the currently-married cases than among the an unfavourable environment, compelling his wife or
divorced and abandoned cases. The similarity between the her guardian to seek a divorce. In most cases, husbands
economic condition of the families of brides and grooms directly initiated divorce. Abandonment was a matter of
did not show any statistically significant relationship with male's whim or power without any accountability to
marital stability (Table 2). anybody.
The survey also identified several important factors influence from other f
in relation to disruption of marriage. The important greater among the disr
factors included distrust that husband had about wife, rently-married ones
extramarital relationship of husband, claim for dowry tramarital affairs of t
and other problems between the families of wife and riage was also observe
husband. It was observed that the problems that were or their families also
exclusively between husband and wife were not always role in the disruption
responsible for the disruption of marriage. In most cases, families of the groom
external factors played a role. The proportion of mar- dowry also played a sig
riages with distrust that husband had about wife with The results are prese
Table 2. Distribution of currently-married and maritally-disrupted cases by s

Socioeconomic characteristics
(n=126) (%) (n=79) (%) (married vs disrupted)
Comparative social and economic

status of parents' family
Groom's natal home was better 50.0 41.3 p=0.500
Bride's natal home was better 31.7 36.0
Both were equal 18.3 22.7
Education of groom's father

None 60.6 74.1 p=0.050
Some 39.4 25.9
Education of bride's father
None 48.0 55.1 p=0.330
Some 52.0 44.9
Education of bride
None 60.3 68.4 p=0.310
Some 39.7 31.6
Education of groom
None 42.1 44.9 p=0.860
Some 57.9 55.1
Table 3. Distribution of currently-married and maritally-disrupted cases by factors relating to family problems
Fiiptnr
1 dClUl
(n=126)(%) (n=79) (%) (married vs disrupted)

Problem with husband
Yes 60.3 68.4 p=0.31
No 39.7 31.6
Distrust of husband on wife
Yes 2.4 17.7 p=0.000
No 97.6 82.3
Extramarital relationship of husband
Yes 5.6 43.0 p=0.000
No 94.4 57.0
Problem with dowry
Yes 19.8 35.4 p=0.02
No 80.2 64.6
Problems between families of
bride and groom
Yes 10.3 43.2 p=0.000
No 89.7 56.8
Biological and behavioural factors chance of breakdown of marriage. The above results,
, , • i- based on the survey, are presented in Table 4.
Among the biological factors, neither the complexion of
the wife nor her height relative to that of her husband Quality of sexual life
was statistically significantly related to breakdown of „ ,, , . ,. ... .. r ., . ,
J ° / _ , Table 5 presents the distribution of currently-married
marriage. However, the religious practices of the respon- ^ martially.disrupted women by
dents or their husbands and gambling and addiction of hus- of quality of sexual Hfe The tab
bands to substances showed a statistically significant rela- (be currently-married women respo
tionship with disruption of marriage. Gambling and addic- Gf the time to the desire of their hus
tion of husbands to substances increased the chance of tercourse. This proportion was 74% am
breakdown of marriage, whereas religiosity reduced the disrupted women. On the other hand,
Table 4. Distribution of currently-married and maritally-disrupted cases by biological and b

of bride and groom
Factor
(n=126)(%) (n=79) (%) (married vs disrupted)
Complexion of bride
Fair 41.3 36.7 p=0.61
Not fair 58.7 63.3
Comparative height of bride and groom
Either similar or wife taller 24.8 16.5 p=0.23
Wife shorter 75.2 83.5
Groom's habit of gambling
Yes 8.8 29.1 p=0.000
No 91.2 70.9
Substance (marijuana, locally-made wine) abuse
Yes 11.9 29.9 p=0.000
No 88.1 70.1
Religious practices of bride
Regular 50.0 29.1 p=0.005
Not regular 50.0 70.9
Religious practices of groom
Regular 31.0 12.7 p=0.005
Not regular 69.0 87.3
Table 5. Distribution of currently-married and maritally-disrupted women by quality of sexual life

i Air-itnr Married Disrupted Statistical significance
n cases (n=126) (%) cases (n=79) (%) (married vs disrupted)
Response of wife to sexual desire of husband
Positive most of the time 88.0 74.0 P= =0.019
Not positive most of the time 12.0 26.0
No. of respondents* 125 73
Response of husband to sexual desire of wife
Positive most of the time 57.5 50.0 P= =0.433
Not positive most of the time 42.5 50.0
No. of respondents* 40 14
Sexual satisfaction of wife with husband
Most of the time satisfied 89.3 85.5 P= =0.601
Most of the time not satisfied 10.7 14.5
No. of respondents 126 62
*Among those who expressed sexual desire
married women and 77% of the currently-divorced and were shalis

abandoned women reportedly never expressed their a mere stateme
sexual desire to their husbands. In the case of those vide for all his
who did, 58% of the husbands of currently-married tion. Thus, re
women and 50% of the husbands of martially-disrupted caused divo
women responded positively most of the time. Satis
Risk of divorce
faction of wives in their sexual life with their husbands
did not show any significant statistical relationship with Life-table
disruption of marriage. that 87% of marriages survived to the end of the ninth
ri„ „ year. The change in the cumulative survival curve was
The case studies revealed that, after disruption of somewhat steeper
marriage, most women returned to their natal homes and nage than it was af
became dependent on their parents. Of them, some lived dissolution úso sho
with their parents, and others lived separately with the tion afer dght ye
help of their parents. what higher than that in the
The most common problem they faced after dis- Correlates of divo
ruption of marriage was their financial inability to sup
port themselves and their children as they did not have The results of haz
any regular source of income. Some also felt constrained divorce with main
as single women to take any initiatives for their better- 'n Table 6. Among
ment under the prevailing social conditions. As single lysis, results of the f
women, they lacked a male guardian, which turned out to a§e a* marriage of
be an important constraint. Maritally-disrupted women spouses had a s
with grown-up daughters felt insecure as they faced un- with risk of divo
due pressure from some members of society to arrange dme mama8e d
an early marriage for their daughters and to restrict their ^cant relationship
movement in the village. Even if they wanted to arrange Risk of divorce wa

a marriage for their daughters, it was not so easy as it outcome. It was rev
required dowry. nancy resulted in an abortion or
The respondents in the case studies did not see much birth were subsequen
prospect of their remairiage due to the general relue- divorce compared to
tance of men to marry a divorced or abandoned woman. Education of wom
Moreover, the demand for dowry was much higher for risk of divorce. W
such women. The prospect of remarriage is more bleak the highest risk of
among the abandoned because it cannot take place with- flve years of school
out a legal divorce. sense, odds of divorce were 2.6 times more among wo
d , men without any schooling than those who had six or
Be it a divorce or an abandonment, the due maintenance J °
support from the husband was universally absent. The more êarS 0 sc 00 in^'
women were almost always deprived of their due right Age differences between the
in deciding about their marriage. Their voice was also nearly related with risk of divorce
unheard about the oppression they had gone through divorce was experienced by women
within their marriage. Claims for support by women husbands by 5-9 years, followed by
after their broken marriage was an exception rather by less than 5 years. The highest ris
than the rule. There was no effective social and institu- by women 10 or more years younger
tional support to help the women get their due share In a relative sense, odds of divorce
from a broken marriage. Some divorces were processed higher among women who were you
through shalish (social court) but the question of paying bands by 4 and 10 or more years re
back mohorana/kabin (contract money) never arose. There who were 5-9 years younger.
In relation to age at marriage of women, those who among women w

married before 16 years of age had the highest risk of abortion/stillbirth
divorce. The lowest risk was observed among women had had some sch
who married at the age of 16-17 years. Age at marriage
of the husband did not show any statistically significant ^he figure prese
relationship with risk of divorce. on the lo8istic regression
of women and outcome of the first pregna
The above relationships between risk of divorce and clearly shows that
age at marriage and age difference between the spouses livebirth during th
were found not to be modified by the level of educa- vival probability. M
tion of the women. However, risk of divorce associated non-livebirth in th
with unsuccessful pregnancy outcome was dependent vival prospect, mean
on level of education of wives or vice-versa. The highest bability of divorc
risk was observed among women without any schooling
and who had had an unsuccessful pregnancy outcome
This group was followed by women with no schooling
and who had had a livebirth, women with some schooling The results of th
with a miscarriage/abortion and stillbirth, and women and abandoned wom
with some schooling and a livebirth. The odds of divorce vulnerable, both
Table 6. Results of hazard analysis of correlates of divorce

Model I Model II
Independent variable No. of women
(3S Odds ratio Ps Odds ratio
Result of first pregnancy X2=58.05***

- -
Livebirth 7,376 -.34 RC

Miscarriage/abortion and stillbirth 975 .34 1.97
Education of women (years) X2=61.71*** - -
0 6,066 0.54 2.59

1-5 1,605 -0.13 1.32
6+ 680 -0.41 RC
Age difference at marriage (years) X2=21.03*** X2=20.77***
Wife younger than husband
by 4 years 2,425 -0.04 1.15 -0.04 1.15
by 5-9 years 3,966 -0.18 RC -0.18 RC
by 10 years or more 1,960 0.22 1.49 0.22 1.49
Age of wife at the time of marriage (years) X2=8.24* X2=8.53*
<16 1,169 0.18 1.34 0.18 1.34
16-17 2,922 -0.11 RC -0.11 RC
18-19 2,636 -0.01 1.11 -0.01 1.11
20+ 1,624 -0.06 1.05 -0.06 1.05
Education of women and
result of first pregnancy X2=l 13.96*
-
No education and miscarriage/

abortion/stillbirth 0.614.18
No education and livebirth 0.19 2.75
Some education and miscarriage/
abortion/stillbirth 0.02 2.32
Some education and livebirth -0.82 RC
Model %2, 7 df 155.41*** X2=l 13.96***

*p<0.05; **p<0.01; ***p<0.001; RC=Reference category
Bangladesh. The factors associated with divorce varied it is underst

from the process of marriage to the quality of sexual mutual unde
life and other individual characteristics. After disruption chance at al
of marriage, in most cases, they had to return to their ¡s the highest
natal home and become dependent on members of their
natal family. The due share of women from broken mar- Among t
riage, such as contract money and maintenance support tion of ma
for themselves and their children, could hardly be realized racterist
Fig. Survival of marriage by education of woman and pregnancy out
literate+livebirth
0.95 \ \X — • ♦ ♦
0.9 literate+non-livebirth
illiterate+livebirth
I 0.85
c3
X
o
illiterate+non-livebirth
0.8 -
0.75
0.7
4 6
Duration
in the absence of any effective institutional support. Both households of husband and wife. Some, on the other
women and their children are looked down upon by mem- are the outcome of the overall position of women in
bers of the community. Quite often women were divorced society. Factors, such as the habit of gambling and su
or abandoned for reasons beyond their control. stance abuse by the husband, may symbolize inadequat
attention to family life and may also cause abuse to
Theoretically speaking, the stability of a marital rela- other family members, especially to wives. It is not
tionship should depend on the quality of the relationship uniikely that the in-laws in a joint family will blame
between the spouses, which may be determined by their the wife for not being able to prevent her husband from
compatibility and level of understanding. As guardians gambling. Both gambling and addiction may also lead
arrange most marriages in rural Bangladesh, development to pressure on the wife to bring money from her nata
of a relationship and understanding between the spouses home to maintain the bad habits of her husband. Such
is a post-marriage matter. In a living environment where demands can be continuous, are bound to remain unfu
the wife joins the husband in his family with other in- filled, and can create a strained relationship between hu
laws, husband and wife get hardly any time together band and wife and their families. This can eventually
without interference from other family members. Thus, lead to divorce or abandonment. A husband's extramarit
affair is also something that results in negligence of the produce

wife and affects their relationship. This may also result Thus, po
in a second marriage, putting the first marriage in jeo- life ca
pardy of ending in divorce. divorce.
Distrust of husband on his wife, which was found to Whatever the reason for d
affect the stability of marriage, may be of a varied nature. true that, in most cases,
This may include distrust with household resources able. Although this paper
and also fidelity. Quite often this is instigated by other situation, the concern rema
family members, over which the wife has hardly any chance of disruption of ma
control. The above factors, especially fidelity, may be sequences. A stable marriage
less common among men and women who adhere desh is an outcome of fulfi
more to religious practices than those who do not. Thus, compatibility between the
there is a lower proportion of men and women in the The wife is indeed in a most d
maritally-disrupted group who comply with religious the one to make everybody
practices. manoeuvre the situation is of prime importance. A natural
question is: what can equip her to avoid divorce, or
Marital stability can also be a function of the ability case ¡t happenSi how can she cope afterw
of the wife to fulfill the expectations of her husband or
other household members. Production of children can In this scenario, the physical and psychol
be one such expectation. Thus, the wife may be held rity of the wife can play an important rol
solely responsible for not being able to produce a live- maturity can help her cope with the bio
birth, and this may result in divorce. In fact, the rela- of her husband, enable her to have a su
tionship of poor pregnancy outcome with divorce may nancy, and cope with the heavy load of ho
also be circular. The poor quality of family life may It is likely that the older the wife at the t
also induce poor pregnancy outcome, which can, in riage, the more likely she is to be phys
turn, cause divorce. In the above context, a review of shoulder the responsibility to fulfill expe
the process of marriage, family life, and divorce in the the higher the age at marriage, the low
study area can be of help. Marriage in rural Bangladesh divorce.
is almost always arranged by parents and/or guardians. ~ , . . ,
™ , , , , , , Chronological age in most cases also leads to greater
The groom s party always has the upper hand m the , , . , . r . ... IT
7. ,f , , , .. . . . psychological maturity of the wife. However, exposure
negotiation of dowry and the bride pnce (kabin/mohorana). . , 7 ^ . .
° ... ... to education can contribute to increasing her capacity
The bnde comes to a new environment and has to strug- „ . . , ,
. ™ , , ... , f, to manoeuvre the marriage situation in her favour,
gle to adjust to it. The other members m the household . . ,, ... ^ , ,, , .
, ,. Education also helps a wife to hold a better status
tend to shift the burden of work on to her and wait to .,. ., ., * , ,
, . , within the family. Educated women are also likely to be
evaluate her performance and to make judgements as , „ . , ,,,. , . „ . , . ,
. , ... . , _ . { °, , better nourished and biologically supenor to uneducated
to her suitability as an in-law. Quite often the work- ™ ., . . , .. „ .. , c
: ,, , , „ , . ones (30). Thus, it is expected that the chances of di
load, accompanied by a lack of support and authority, , „ , . ,
. . , . „ , ,, , vorce among educated women are lower than among
becomes physically and emotionally unbearable, result- , . , T . . ... , . ,
. , . uneducated ones. It is also likely that education can
ing in her failure to fulfill the expectations of her hus- .. c e . , , . c
... . „. , help a woman fight for her due claim from marriage
band and/or m-laws. At this point, a conflict starts and, A .. , . . , . . c ,
. . , , . . „ , „ after divorce and, m some cases, can also help her find
for some, it is the beginning of the process of divorce. . c ,. ...
. r. f ,, an occupation for making a living.
It is most likely that the crisis continues and becomes
intense, involving extreme psychological pressure and It should be mentioned t
physical violence towards her as time progresses (29). used in this paper were ba
In the meantime, if she becomes pregnant, it can inter- only; as a result, the m
fere with her physical capacity to perform household of divorce and other rele
work, resulting in more assaults and eventually ending missing in this paper. C
her pregnancy in a miscarriage, abortion, or stillbirth. composition of living ch
At times, this may also be termed her gross failure to tal stability in India (31)
3. Ahmed these
in the context of Bangladesh. However, R, Naherwere
MS. Brides
notand the demand
examined in this study. A future study systemonin Bangladesh:
maritala ins study. Dhaka: Centre for
Social Studies, 1987. 203 p.
tability should look into these factors.
4. Sattar
In conclusion, the fact that women areA, now
Huq N.partici
Marriage through the eyes of
pating in the development programmes adolescent girls. Dhaka:
available in Bangladesh
the Rural Advance
ment Committee,
study area (especially of BRAC) is likely to bring 1992. 34 p.
about
a positive impact in reducing the vulnerability of econo
5. Arens J, van Burden J. Jhagrapur: poor peasants
mically-disadvantaged women due to marital disruption.
and women in a village in Bangladesh. Dhaka:
Development programmes such asGonoprakashani,
BRAC's can 1977. help
189 p.
women on at least two accounts in the context of
6. Alam
marital disruption. In general, it can raise the status of N, Saha SK, Razzaque A, van Ginneken JK.
women in society and ensure their role in marriage The effect of divorce on infant mortality in a
decisions. Income generated through their participation remote area of Bangladesh. J Biosoc Sci 2001 ;33:
271-8.
in the development programmes can make them an
asset to the family rather than a burden. In any even
7. Hartmann B, Boyce JK. A quiet violence: view
tuality, the income-generating programme can also from a Bangladesh village. Dhaka: University Press
ensure a reasonable income for her maintenance. LegalLimited, 1990. 285 p.
education of BRAC can also equip them to claim their
due share from a broken marriage. It is unclear how 8. far
Rangpur Dinajpur Rural Service. Why marriages
the resolutions against dowry will reduce its prevalence. break up. Dhaka: LWF/World Service, Rangpur
Even BRAC-member women, while informally discusDinajpur Rural Service, 1990. 29 p.
sing the use of their savings from BRAC-assisted pro
9. Momen M, Bhuiya A, Chowdhury M. Vulnerable
jects, mentioned that one of the possible uses would be
of the vulnerables: the situation of divorced, aban
dowry for their son-in-law. Development interventions doned and widowed women in a rural area of
like that of BRAC have explicit goals to empowerBangladesh. Dhaka: BRAC-ICDDR,B Joint Research
women and to reduce their vulnerability; nevertheless,Project, 1995. 29 p. (Socioeconomic development
it would be of interest to examine the impact of socioand human well-being; working paper no. 11).
economic and development programmes in reducing the
vulnerability of women to divorce and its aftermath.10. Hossain N, Huda S. Problems of women-headed
households. Dhaka: BRAC-ICDDR.B Joint Research
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Project, 1995. 57 p. (Socioeconomic development
and human well-being; working paper no. 9).
This study was carried out under the auspices of the
11. Bhuiya A, Chowdhury M. The impact of divorce
BRAC-ICDDR,B Joint Research Project in on Matlab.
child survival in a rural area of Bangladesh.
The Project has been supported by the Aga Khan
Popul Stud 1997;51:57-61.
Foundation and Ford Foundation. The authors grate
12.of
fully acknowledge the institutional support Jesmin
BRACS. Marital instability and its effects on
and ICDDR,B in carrying out this study. bustee women and children. Dhaka: Institute for
Development Policy Analysis and Advocacy,
The authors are also grateful to two anonymous rep. (Urban livelihood study monograph
1998. 130
viewers for their valuable comments on an earlierno.draft
3).
of the paper.
13. Bracher M, Santow G Morgan SP, Trussell J.
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Marital Disruption: Determinants and Consequences on the Lives of Women in a Rural Area

Marital Disruption: Determinants and

INTRODUCTION The most important social status a woman atta

The case studies, carried out among 18 maritally-dis- out-migration, divo

such as the amount of dowry, registration of marriage, faced by women af

Marriages in which the groom was informed by his guar- Education of f

Married cases Disrupted cases Statistical significance

Consent of bride in marriage

Table 2. Distribution of currently-married and maritally-disrupted cases by s

Comparative social and economic

Both were equal 18.3 22.7

Education of groom's father

(n=126)(%) (n=79) (%) (married vs disrupted)

Table 4. Distribution of currently-married and maritally-disrupted cases by biological and b

Table 5. Distribution of currently-married and maritally-disrupted women by quality of sexual life

*Among those who expressed sexual desire

married women and 77% of the currently-divorced and were shalis

movement in the village. Even if they wanted to arrange Risk of divorce wa

In relation to age at marriage of women, those who among women w

Table 6. Results of hazard analysis of correlates of divorce

Result of first pregnancy X2=58.05***

Livebirth 7,376 -.34 RC

0 6,066 0.54 2.59

No education and miscarriage/

Model %2, 7 df 155.41*** X2=l 13.96***

Bangladesh. The factors associated with divorce varied it is underst

Fig. Survival of marriage by education of woman and pregnancy out

affair is also something that results in negligence of the produce

15. Khan ZR. Women, work and values: 1995contradiction

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Model %2, 7 df 155.41* X2=l 13.96*