There are many reasons the divorce rate has increased. Many couples in today's world both have to work to make ends meet. So that's 9-5 5 days a week at least without seeing each other and when they get home each are dog tired and some don't have the energy for a relationship. Then the husband and/or wife sit down and watch TV which kills the conversation. A man sees a pretty model on TV or a woman sees a young hunk on TV and all of a sudden they loose interest in their partner. Also they see affairs in the sitcoms and the man or woman decides that might be a neat thing to try out. All these influences make it difficult for partners to forming lasting bonds. One of the important roles of the mother in just about all societies is nurturer/caregiver and that is what our society has lost and it shows with the increasing rates of violence. In the absence of love hate breeds. Woman are forced to work (and often like it because it makes them feel independent even though very few people are really independent in the truest sense of the word) when they should be with their baby 24/7 in the early formative years.