When the Economy Breaks Down, Do Marriages Follow? Crisis Type and Family Dissolution across 83 Countries (1990–2019)

Abstract This study examines how different types of national economic crises—banking, currency, and debt—affect divorce rates across 83 countries from 1990 to 2019. While previous research has largely focused on individual-level financial stressors or single-country analyses, this study employs a cross-national time-series panel approach to uncover how macroeconomic disruptions influence marital dissolution. Findings reveal that banking and currency crises are associated with short- to medium-term increases in divorce rates, while debt crises consistently correlate with reduced divorce rates. These effects persist even after accounting for economic development, social globalization, gender inequality, and other structural covariates. The results provide insights into the macro-structural determinants of family stability and have implications for crisis-specific policy responses to support family well-being during periods of financial disruption.