 
|
|
|
|
York U. Conference Urges Action to Stem the Tide of Marriage Breakdown
Hosted by York's Vanier College and the Psychology Foundation of Canada, the conference will consider how we can bolster families and marital relationships, given the prevalence of marital disintegration and its damaging consequences. It is estimated that half of all first marriages in Canada end in divorce, and an additional 17 per cent of couples separate but do not divorce, while the divorce rate among second marriages is 10 per cent higher.
"This is one of the most important projects we will undertake in this decade," said conference co-chair, Dr. Harold Minden, professor emeritus in psychology at York University and best-selling author of the parenting book, Two Hugs for Survival (McClelland & Stewart, 1985). "The cost to society of marriage breakup and the resulting emotional, social and behavioural problems in children, adolescents and their parents is in the millions of dollars. And the greatest danger is that we have accepted marriage breakup as normal in our society."
Minden will present a master plan for turning off the tap of separation and divorce, examining the critical role of the agents of change in government, the media, religion, industry, education, parent organizations, the mental health profession, social agencies, community groups, and the judiciary. Following the conference, task forces will be established in each of these areas, and plans are also underway to establish a pre-marital compatibility assessment centre in Toronto for the general public. The centre will enable couples considering marriage to determine their level of compatibility and potential problems, and give them the tools to work on those problems in advance.
Guest speakers at the conference include prominent conservative social critic and US newspaper columnist, Maggie Gallagher, who will present her evidence for the positive effects of marriage on health, finances, longevity and children's behaviour. Gallagher is author of the acclaimed Enemies of Eros: How the Sexual Revolution is Killing Family, Marriage and Sex, (Bonus Books, 1989), and The Abolition of Marriage (Simon &Schuster, 1995). Her latest book, The Case for Marriage, is published this fall by Doubleday.
Dr. David Olsen, professor emeritus in family social science at the University of Minnesota and creator of the Prepare/Enrich compatibility assessment program now widely used in Catholic family counselling, will discuss how couples can deal with incompatibilities.
Keynote speaker David Popenoe, professor of sociology at Rutgers University and co-director of The National Marriage Project based in New Jersey, will discuss how our modern culture encourages self-interest, independence instead of interdependence, immediate gratification of needs and ultimately, marriage and family break-up. Popenoe is the author or editor of nine books, including Life Without Father: Compelling New Evidence that Fatherhood and Marriage are Indispensable for the Good of Children and Society.
Dr. Robert Glossop, executive director of The Vanier Institute of the Family, based in Ottawa, will present recent trends in the Canadian family profile. Ben Schlesinger, professor emeritus in the faculty of social work at the University of Toronto and a respected scholar on the subject of families from a Canadian and international perspective, will discuss whether a lasting marriage is fact or fiction. Schlesinger is author and editor of 22 books, among them, Canadian Families in Transition (Canadian Scholar's Press, 1992), and Canadian Families: A Resource Guide (OISE Press, 1989).
Prof. Minden says family breakup is the engine driving our most urgent social problems, from crime, to violence, to adolescent pregnancy, to child and wife abuse. He cites research showing 70 per cent of long-term prison inmates, 60 per cent of rapists, and 75 per cent of adolescents charged with murder come from broken homes. He says clinical studies show children from broken homes are three times more likely to fail at school, experience emotional problems requiring psychiatric treatment, and commit suicide, and are 40 times more likely to experience child abuse.
Minden says school curricula should change from emphasizing how to adjust to divorce and a broken home to celebrating the joys of family life and promoting the tools for making it work. He says members of the mass media and entertainment industry also must examine their role in contributing to the disintegration of marriage when they showcase role models on television, in movies, books and magazines "who are constantly changing partners and are in and out of turnstile marriages."
For further information, please contact:
Dr. Harold Minden
Dr. Jane Margles
Susan Bigelow
|
|
| | Welcome to York University | Latest Release | Release Archives | |
![[to York's Home Page]](../../images/yorklogos.gif)
|
|
 |