Divorce by the numbers

Early in my journalism career, I casually mentioned a national 50 percent divorce rate in a relationship piece.

When an editor told me to attribute the number to a specific organization, I figured a simple Google search would resolve the issue.

Not true.

After scouring multiple websites, I couldn't find a source that said the statistic was irrefutable, or even scientifically proven.

And now, a Time magazine article asks, "Are marriage statistics divorced from reality?"

The short answer? Maybe. The piece cites a NY Times reporter whose new book debunks the 50 percent statistic.

Author Tara Parker-Pope and many others contend "that the 50% stat is a myth that persists because it's something of a political Swiss Army knife, handy for any number of agendas. Social conservatives use it to call for more marriage-friendly policies, while liberals find it handy to press for funding for programs that help single moms."

She adds the number also often becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy that makes us take marital commitment less seriously.

Weigh in: Has the 50 percent number shaped your perception of marriage, or have you always viewed it as flawed science?

(Get more marriage-related news on Katie Holland's wedding blog here.)