Which U.S. Jobs Lead to Divorce? A Five-Year Study Reveals the Most and Least Stable Careers

Study Identifies U.S. Professions with Highest and Lowest Divorce Rates

According to Evil HR Lady: A five-year research project led by Dr. Sarah Corse, an associate professor of sociology at the University of Virginia's College of Arts and Sciences, has revealed significant variation in divorce risk across different occupations. The study analyzed divorce rate data for numerous professions, pinpointing those with both the highest and lowest incidence of marital dissolution. This research provides a unique lens into how work life can intersect with personal stability.

Occupations with the Highest and Lowest Divorce Rates

The professions with the highest percentage of divorce are led by:

• Gaming managers (52.9%)
• Bartenders (52.7%)
• Flight attendants (50.5%)
• Gaming services workers (50.3%)
• Rolling machine setters, operators, and tenders for metal and plastic (50.1%)
• Switchboard operators (49.7%)
• Extruding and drawing machine setters (49.6%)
• Telemarketers (49.2%)
• Knitting and weaving machine operators (48.9%)

Conversely, the occupations with the lowest divorce rates include:

• Actuaries (17.0%)
• Physicists (18.9%)
• Medical scientists and life scientists (19.6%)
• Clergy (19.8%)
• Software developers (20.3%)
• Physical therapists (20.7%)
• Optometrists (20.8%)
• Chemical engineers (21.1%)
• Directors of religious activities and education (21.3%)
• Physicians and surgeons (21.8%)

Dr. Sarah Corse notes that 'the working class with unstable jobs and few resources, little stability, and an inability to plan a predictable future begins to worry about its own survival and often becomes unable to imagine that it can provide for others materially and emotionally.'

The findings offer a clearer understanding of which careers are associated with greater marital instability and which tend to correlate with more stable relationships. This underscores the critical role of socioeconomic factors in shaping personal lives, as one's profession can deeply impact emotional well-being and financial security. Understanding these trends could inform the development of support programs for those in high-risk occupations and help shape strategies to improve relationship stability across various fields.