Is Divorce Contagious?

Have you ever noticed that when someone gets a divorce, one of their friends often gets a divorce soon thereafter? Or that divorce seems to run through families - that once the first person gets a divorce, then there is a string of divorces? Is this factual, or is it your imagination? According to a recent study on the subject, it is true. In the study, a person with a friend who has divorced is 147% more likely to get a divorce, and a person with a divorced sibling is 22% more likely to get a divorce. Apparently, noone wants to be the first or only one in their social group to get a divorce. There is still a certain stigma about being divorced. So how do you avoid "catching the divorce bug"? Be aware that when someone close to you gets divorced, it may change the way you think about divorce. If you are having problems in your marriage, work harder on them before throwing in the towel just because your friend did. Source: http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/HealthyLiving/divorce-contagious/story?id=11198347#.TrLAXHKUyIw