Identity and Repartnering After Separation

This book examines the lives and repartnering behaviour of former spouses and co-habitees, groups pivotal to recent marital change. Focusing on contemporary Britain, it examines these people's experiences of being single, their orientations towards past and new relationships, and their self-identities in the context of a couple-orientated society.

Identity and Repartnering After Separation examines the lives and repartnering behaviour of formerly married people, a group pivotal to recent marital and family change. In addition to the formerly married, it focuses upon former co-habitees, an increasingly important group within the population. The analyses draw upon material from in-depth interviews with women and men of a variety of ages, and make use of theories about couple relationships in contemporary western societies and theoretical ideas relating to themes such as intimacy, identity and ''risk''. Detailed statistical analyses of repartnering orientations and behaviour, carried out specifically for this book, complement this qualitative and theoretical material. Focusing on contemporary Britain, the book contains examinations of formerly partnered people''s diverse experiences of being ''single'', the significance of their earlier relationships, their orientations towards new relationships, and their self-identities in the context of a couple-orientated society.