一个明显的趋势正在50岁以上的夫妇中出现——决定结束他们的长期婚姻。这种现象通常被称为“灰色离婚”，已经出现了显著增长，50岁以上成年人的离婚率在1990年至2010年间增长了一倍多。
发表在《老年学杂志》上的一项2022年的研究显示，36%经历离婚的美国成年人年龄在50岁或以上。值得注意的是，离婚率上升的唯一年龄组是65岁及以上的人。鲍林格林州立大学的社会学教授苏珊·布朗帮助创造了“灰色离婚”这个术语。
布朗说:“女性似乎更有可能主动提出离婚，但许多人会认为，这实际上可能只是反映了这样一个事实，即女性必须在人际关系中承担这些类型的任务。”
艺术家伊迪丝·海克是越来越多的美国已婚人士中的一员，他们选择在50岁后离婚。
“我是一个70多岁的人，正在寻找一个60多岁的人，”这位74岁的老人告诉Nightline。“我有一个健身伙伴……我有一个滑雪伙伴。我正过着我梦寐以求的最有活力的生活。”
海克生长在一个传统的家庭，但她说她的生活经历与众不同。
“我从小就相信我会结婚，我会得到照顾。我从来不知道离婚。我不认识任何离过婚的人，”海克说。
“我认为我的故事的一部分是，我是第一代在18或19岁时正确服用避孕药的女性。我们发现了自己的自由感，这样我们就不必像我母亲那样维持婚姻，比方说，她无法谋生。”
海克单身生活蒸蒸日上，她说，她接受新的职业机会，比如管理当地的海滨公园，尝试新的爱好，比如单口喜剧。
像海克一样，播客劳拉·斯塔西也发现单身生活令人耳目一新。
64岁的她结婚近30年，直到她当时的丈夫建议他们分开。起初，斯塔西说她觉得自己失去了自我，但离婚后又重获独立。
她主持了一个名为“灰色时约会”的播客，主要关注老年人的人际关系和约会场景。
“我不想抛弃我的前夫，”斯塔西说。“我会说我会永远坚持那段婚姻。所以在很多方面，我很感激他给了我离婚的翅膀。”
灰色离婚一直是流行文化中反复出现的主题，在1996年的《第一夫人俱乐部》(由贝特·迈德尔、戈尔迪·霍恩和黛安娜·基顿主演)和2009年的《很复杂》(由梅丽尔·斯特里普、史蒂夫·马丁和亚历克·鲍德温主演)等电影中都有明显的描述。
人口普查数据显示，在这两部电影上映的这段时间里，美国50岁以上成年人的离婚率翻了一番。
一些名人也用他们的分手声明让人们大吃一惊。这一趋势包括著名演员，如斯特里普，“x战警”明星休杰克曼和情景喜剧女王丽亚·雷米尼。它也延伸到亿万富翁慈善家比尔和梅林达盖茨和政治人物，如前副总统戈尔。
苏珊·布朗说:“所有这些名人灰色离婚确实象征着在我们的人群中正在发生的更广泛的事情。”。"它们也有助于规范后半生的灰色离婚."
布朗还说，代际期望也可能在灰色离婚中发挥重要作用。
“这在很大程度上与婴儿潮一代独特的生活经历有关，他们在20世纪70年代和80年代初的第一次离婚革命中成年，年轻时集体离婚，其中许多人后来再婚，”布朗说。
“我们发现态度的转变反映了行为模式。因此，如果你发现自己的婚姻不令人满意，老年人实际上非常支持离婚。”
As 'gray divorce' rates rise, women open up about becoming single after 50
A noticeable trend is emerging among couples over 50-- deciding to end their long-term marriages. This phenomenon, often referred to as "gray divorce," has seen a significant increase, with the divorce rate for adults aged 50 plus more than doubling between 1990 and 2010.
A 2022 study published in The Journals of Gerontology reveals that 36% of U.S. adults going through a divorce were 50 or older. Notably, the only age group experiencing an increasing divorce rate is those aged 65 and older. Susan Brown, a sociology professor at Bowling Green State University, helped coin the term "gray divorce."
"Women seem to be maybe a little bit more likely to initiate divorce, but many would argue that that could actually just be reflecting the fact that women are the ones who have to do these types of tasks within relationships," Brown said.
Artist Edith Heyck is part of the growing wave of formerly married Americans choosing to split up after age 50.
“I’m a septuagenarian looking for a sexagenarian," the 74-year-old told Nightline. "I've got a gym guy … I have a ski partner. I'm leading the most vibrant life that I could have dreamed of."
Heyck grew up in a traditional household but said her life experiences are far from conventional.
"I was raised to believe that I would be married, I would be taken care of. I never knew about divorce. I didn't know anyone that was divorced," Heyck said.
"And I think that part of my story is that I'm the first generation of women who got the pill right when I was 18 or 19 years old. We discovered a sense of our own freedom so that we didn't have to stay married in the same way as my mother did, let's say, who wasn't able to earn a living."
Heyck is thriving as a single person, she said, taking on new career opportunities like managing a local waterfront park, and trying out new hobbies, like stand-up comedy.
Much like Heyck, podcaster Laura Stassi has found the single life to be refreshing.
The 64-year-old was married for nearly 30 years until her then-husband suggested they separate. Initially, Stassi said she felt she had lost her identity, but regained her independence after the divorce.
She hosts a podcast called "Dating While Gray," which focuses on navigating relationships and the dating scene for older adults.
"I don't want to throw my ex-husband under the bus," Stassi said. "I will say I would have soldiered on in that marriage forever. And so in many ways, I'm grateful that he gave me divorce wings."
Gray divorces have been a recurring theme in pop culture, with notable depictions in films such as 1996's "First Wives Club" -- which starred Bette Midler, Goldie Hawn and Diane Keaton -- and 2009's "It's Complicated" -- which starred Meryl Streep, Steve Martin and Alec Baldwin.
Census data indicates the divorce rate among U.S. adults over 50 doubled in the time between the release of those two movies.
Some celebrities have also surprised people with their separation announcements. This trend includes prominent actors such as Streep, "X-Men" star Hugh Jackman and sitcom queen Leah Remini. It also extends to billionaire philanthropists Bill and Melinda Gates and political figures like former Vice President Al Gore.
"All of these celebrity gray divorces are really emblematic of what's happening more broadly in our population," Susan Brown said. "They also serve to normalize gray divorce in the second half of life."
Brown also said that generational expectations may also play a significant role in gray divorces.
"A lot of it has to do with the unique life force experiences of baby boomers who came of age during the first divorce revolution during the 1970s and early 1980s, getting divorced en masse as young adults, and many of them went on to enter remarriages," Brown said.
"We're finding that the attitudinal shifts have mirrored the behavioral patterns. So older adults are actually pretty supportive of divorce in the event that you find yourself in an unsatisfying marriage."
