Investigating the Factors Affecting Divorce in the Last Decade (A Systematic Review)

Divorce rates have risen considerably in recent years. The present article, based on the achievements of the researches conducted during the last decade, seeks to find the most important factors affecting divorce in Iran. The type of the study is a systematic review of the studies recorded during the last decade (from 1390 to 1398) on the causes and factors of divorce. For this purpose, a search was carried out in databases including the Scientific Information Database of Jahad Daneshgahi (SID), Noor Specialized Magazines Website (Noormags), the Database of the Iranian Press (MagIran), and the Comprehensive Humanities Portal (Ensani), with the keywords, causes and factors of divorce, which resulted in 90 articles. Excluding duplicate and less relevant articles over that certain period of time, 41 articles were eligible to be included in this study. The findings revealed that individual (personal, personality, demographic and physical) factors and socio-cultural, economic, legal and situational factors play roles in divorce. Moreover, attention to internal preparations and cultural and social changes on a large scale has become a further cause of divorce and led to a growing increase in it. In addition, culture and the personal and personality factors originated from culture may be regarded as a predisposing factor, at the top of the factors causing divorce. Based on the obtained results, the underlying factors (culture and the personal and personality factors derived from culture) are among the most significant factors that can be modified to reduce the growth rate of divorce and raise the hope for stability and constancy in married life. Such factors as the improper intracouple relationship and the economy are of the revealing type, and finally, the laws and situational factors are considered to be perpetuating it, which are effective in leading the couple to divorce.