Your job might predict the length of your marriage

 

Source: http://voices.news24.com/bertus-preller/2012/04/your-occupation-may-predict-the-length-of-your-marriage/

According to a study done at the Radford University in the United States people who are working in stressful jobs or extrovert environments have a much higher risk of getting divorced. While it is not surprising that marriages fail when spouses have jobs that demand long hours and unpredictable work cycles studies did find that a few occupations carried a higher risk for divorce than what one might expect.

One may assume that people working in extrovert environments like for example in the entertainment or hospitality industries, will obviously meet more people and have more opportunity to develop relationships with them but studies also found that people working in the nursing and caring-type professions have a higher risk of divorce than what one would normally expect.

There are many factors at play in the occupation that a person has. Your occupation defines the amount of hours you work, the mental toll it takes, and also the personality you may develop during the course of your employment and conversely, on may argue that the occupation you choose maybe a reflection of your personality.

It is believed that individuals who are habitually unhappy with their work often those in low-earning, low-skilled professions may transfer this dissatisfaction to their spouse and children. A frustrating job may lead to immature defences such as displacement onto others, especially one’s closest family members.

A recent study by the Florida State University College of Business that questioned 400 working couples on the health of their relationship and how stressful their daily life was found that when work related stress strongly affects a couple, that couple risks a deteriorating relationship unless they are willing to emotionally support each other. When you are still angry or upset from yesterday’s stress, your workday will likely go in only one direction – down. Whenever this type of stress permeates through a relationship, it either brings the couple together or splits it apart.

The study also found that not only does work stress at home affect a relationship, but it also makes spouses less alert and less focused at work.

The jobs with the highest divorce rate

Low divorce rates around 5 to 6% were reported for optometrists and podiatrists. Dancers (including the exotic variety), massage therapists and bartenders still top the list of occupations likely to result in divorce with a 38 – 43% divorce rate. Those who work in the evenings are a distinct disadvantage, because the marital friendship usually suffers, with ensuing significant loneliness.

The table below identifies that the highest divorce rates are for dancers, bartenders, and, all around 40%. The extroverted nature of these jobs may reflect a personality that is unwilling to commit.

The occupations with the lowest divorce rates (of less than 10%) mostly seem to be engineers.

Below is a list of some of the occupations and the corresponding divorce rates:

Occupation	Divorce Rate
Dancers and choreographers	43.05
Bartenders	38.43
Massage therapists	38.22
Waiters and waitresses	27.12
Hotel, motel, and resort desk clerks	25.94
Security guards and gaming surveillance officers	23.67
Sociologists	23.53
Social workers	23.16
Commercial divers	22.98
Emergency medical technicians and paramedics	22.75
Forest and conservation workers	22.69
Cashiers	22.5
Counsellors	22.49
Agents and business managers of artists, performers, and athletes	22.3
Meeting and convention planners	22.24
Property, real estate, and community association managers	22.12
Actors	22.08
Health diagnosing and treating practitioners, all other	22.04
Food servers, nonrestaurant	21.38
Taxi drivers and chauffeurs	21.3
Court, municipal, and license clerks	20.92
File Clerks	20.91
Cooks	20.86
Carpenters	20.85
Cargo and freight agents	20.82
Hairdressers, hairstylists, and cosmetologists	20.58
Reservation and transportation ticket agents and travel clerks	20.45
Receptionists and information clerks	20.45
Medical, dental, and ophthalmic laboratory technicians	20.31
Chefs and head cooks	20.1
Telecommunications line installers and repairers	19.85
Office and administrative support workers, all other	19.85
Earth drillers, except oil and gas	19.78
Textile, apparel, and furnishings workers, all other	19.77
Transportation inspectors	19.76
Psychologists	19.3
Tax examiners, collectors, and revenue agents	19.19
Insurance claims and policy processing clerks	19.18
Mathematicians	19.15
Driver/sales workers and truck drivers	19.14
Human resources, training, and labor relations specialists	19.1
Medical and health services managers	19.06
Butchers and other meat, poultry, and fish processing workers	19.04
Computer support specialists	18.93
First-line supervisors/managers of office and administrative support workers	18.93
Archivists, curators, and museum technicians	18.92
Office clerks, general	18.9
Health diagnosing and treating practitioner support technicians	18.71
Military enlisted tactical operations and air/weapons specialists and crew members	18.68
Prepress technicians and workers	18.66
Automotive body and related repairers	18.64
Electrical and electronics repairers, industrial and utility	18.62
Insurance underwriters	18.5
Sewing machine operators	18.5
Paper goods machine setters, operators, and tenders	18.48
Bus drivers	18.44
Photographers	18.23
Models, demonstrators, and product promoters	17.71
Couriers and messengers	17.69
Producers and directors	17.68
Financial specialists, all other	17.21
Other life, physical, and social science technicians	17.19
Real estate brokers and sales agents	17.17
Artists and related workers	17.13
Musicians, singers, and related workers	17.11
Helpers–installation, maintenance, and repair workers	17.08
Gaming managers	17.06
Stationary engineers and boiler operators	16.99
Retail salespersons	16.99
Engineering technicians, except drafters	16.97
Librarians	16.9
Dieticians and nutritionists	16.89
Child care workers	16.83
Other installation, maintenance, and repair workers	16.8
Heavy vehicle and mobile equipment service technicians and mechanics	16.75
Designers	16.74
Logisticians	16.73
Human resources managers	16.69
Recreation and fitness workers	16.57
Special education teachers	16.55
First-line supervisors/managers of retail sales workers	16.52
Lodging managers	16.48
Machinists	16.48
Electricians	16.48
Tour and travel guides	16.13
Travel agents	16.09
Writers and authors	15.92
First-line supervisors/managers of production and operating workers	15.9
Mining machine operators	15.89
Boilermakers	15.89
Insurance sales agents	14.83
Chemical processing machine setters, operators, and tenders	14.83
Financial managers	14.77
Electrical power-line installers and repairers	14.76
Advertising and promotions managers	13.05
Preschool and kindergarten teachers	13.02
Elementary and middle school teachers	12.93
Fire inspectors	12.91
Personal financial advisors	12.89
Tellers	12.85
Judges, magistrates, and other judicial workers	12.48
Astronomers and physicists	10.71
Chief executives	9.81
Pharmacists	9.79
Environmental engineers	9.62
First-line enlisted military supervisors/managers	9.57
Signal and track switch repairers	9.41
Civil engineers	9.35
Religious workers, all other	9.35
Physicians and surgeons	9.23
Mechanical engineers	9.22
Medical scientists	9.11
Physical scientists, all other	8.79
Biomedical engineers	8.74
Legislators	8.74
First-line supervisors/managers of fire fighting and prevention workers	8.68
Engineering managers	8.52
Dentists	7.75
Farmers and ranchers	7.63
Actuaries	7.61
Chemical engineers	7.48
Conservation scientists and foresters	7.4
Nuclear engineers	7.29
Podiatrists	6.81
Sales engineers	6.61
Directors, religious activities and education	5.88
Clergy	5.61
Transit and railroad police	5.26
Optometrists	4.01