To determine the impact of contraceptive use on marital disruption, researchers conducted secondary analyses of data from the Malaysian Family Life Survey, interviewing women about their life histories.

Malaysia

The availability of modern contraception can transform women's control over fertility and, in turn, over other aspects of their lives. The effect of contraceptive use on marital stability has been unclear. Contraceptive use may allow employment for pay, which, in turn, may contribute to a woman's independence and allow her to terminate an unsatisfactory relationship. On the other hand, for many women control over fertility and increased employment contribute to marital stability.

Research Findings

To determine the impact of contraceptive use on marital disruption, researchers conducted secondary analyses of data from the Malaysian Family Life Survey. The survey included 1,261 women interviewed in 1976, plus 889 women who were re-interviewed in 1988 and a new sample of women interviewed in 1988. The use of retrospective life histories provided information on the timing of pregnancy and other events in women's lives. Contraceptive use was measured as "ever use" of contraception. Marital disruption was defined as divorce or separation.

• In first marriages, marital disruption occurred among 8.8 percent of the 1976 women, 11.1 percent of the women re-interviewed in 1988, and 5.9 percent of the new sample of women.

• Women who used contraception were significantly less likely than non-users to experience marital disruption (Table 1).

• Contraceptive use early in marriage (by age 25) reduced the likelihood of marital disruption by about 40 percent. These early contraceptors also had fewer births than women who initiated use at a later point.

• Non-users were more likely to experience a marital disruption if they had no or few births.

• If a woman worked before or after marriage, she was at greater risk of marital disruption. This effect was greater for non-users than users.

• The relationship between contraceptive use and marital disruption held for Malaysian women who were first married when contraceptive practice was still relatively rare (women interviewed in 1976 and 1988). It also was true for those who had more exposure to modern contraceptive practices (1988 new sample). For both groups, marital disruption was less likely to occur if women used contraception. Those effects were stronger for women who used contraception early in marriage (by age 25), who had fewer births, and who did not work before marriage.

• The relationship between contraceptive use and marital disruption may be a function of a factor not measured by the analysis. For example, spouses who have better rapport and communication may be both more likely to use contraception and less likely to divorce. Since spousal communication was not measured in these surveys, that possibility could not be examined. However, the analysis does include two proxy measures of spousal communication-number of marital births and timing of use in marriage-which do not change the effects of contraceptive use on marital disruption. Thus, the findings are consistent with the interpretation that contraceptive use improves spousal relations and reduces marital disruption.

Study Details

Secondary analyses was conducted by Dr. Mary Kritz and colleagues at the Department of Rural Sociology, Cornell University for the Women's Studies Project (WSP) at Family Health International. The WSP was funded through a Cooperative Agreement with the U.S. Agency for International Development.