Divorce rate falling in US

The number of marriages that are ending in divorce in the US has fallen to its lowest rate since the 1970s, according to new research.

However, the drop in the number of divorces could well be attributed to the falling number of marriages.

Figures from the US Department of Health and Human Services' latest National Vital Statistics Report show that the divorce rate has fallen from 5.3 per 1,000 people in 1981 to 3.6 per 1,000 people in 2005.

But at the same time, the marriage rate has fallen from10.6 per 1,000 in 1981 to just 7.5 in 2005.

Rebecca Starnes, of the Family Life Council in Greensboro, told the Greensboro News & Record: "This is a generation that is a little bit worried about marriage. Their parents were the divorce generation."

However, marriage counsellor Nancy Long disagrees, believing that the fall in the divorce rate is due to the fact that more couples are making an effort to work through their marriage problems.

She said: "People are willing to take more time and try to figure out things and make it work. I think people are longing for that kind of lifestyle."