Divorce Research

Executive Summary: University-based research highlights that people navigating divorce most often seek clear legal information and guidance, affordable legal assistance, and emotional support, along with a streamlined process and concern for their children’s welfare.

For example, a Stanford survey found that half of individuals seeking legal help wanted assistance to “understand your rights…the different ways you could go about handling the situation”. Harvard’s Access to Justice Lab similarly reports that legal representation is crucial for low-income spouses to successfully divorce.

We identify the top ten needs (ranked by frequency in the literature) and cite university research for each.

A comparison table shows which universities’ studies mention each need. Notably, most findings come from U.S. court and legal-aid contexts (often low-income samples), with little demographic breakdown. Some expected needs (e.g. privacy, mental health support, fair asset division) are not explicitly documented in these university sources.

1. Legal Information and Education. Divorcing individuals frequently need clear information about legal rights, procedures, and options. Empirical studies find many seek help just to “understand your rights/the different ways you could go about handling the situation”. Stanford research (Sandefur 2020) notes that 50% of respondents wanted exactly this guidance when dealing with a civil justice problem (like divorce). In short, accessible legal information/education is a top priority (Stanford Univ., 2020) for people in divorce.
2. Access to Legal Assistance (Representation and Advice). People undergoing divorce often want affordable expert help. Stanford research emphasizes that many contacts for legal problems are effectively looking for lawyer-like advice. Harvard’s Access-to-Justice study (Greiner 2018) found that “those offered [pro bono] representation were nearly four times as likely… to have a divorce case on record”, underscoring the demand for legal aid. Likewise, Rhode et al. (Stanford, 2018) show that low-income spouses overwhelmingly rely on lawyers or legal aids for divorce. Thus, affordable legal counsel and expert aid is a frequently cited need across sources.
3. Emotional/Moral Support. Divorce is emotionally taxing, and many participants value support. In interviews, survivors noted that even limited legal help “provided a needed level of moral support” and reassurance that “they could call someone for help”. Stanford scholars (Rhode et al., 2018) highlight that having an attorney listen with compassion benefits clients regardless of case outcome. In summary, emotional support and advocacy (beyond pure legal advice) emerges as a key client need.
4. Efficient, Streamlined Process. Delays and complexity add stress; people want a simpler process. Harvard Law research found that the uncontested divorce process can be so complex that without a lawyer one can remain “trapped in marriage”. Multiple forms, waiting periods, and jargon were noted as major hurdles. This implies a strong desire for a faster, more user-friendly divorce system. Respondents’ struggles in Philadelphia (primarily low-income) illustrate that efficiency and clarity in procedure are pressing concerns.
5. Financial Clarity/Security. Financial issues are often top of mind, though specific “needs” here are less directly documented in these sources. Research notes that divorce sharply reduces family income (especially for low-income or minority households), suggesting that divorcing people want clear financial planning (child support, asset division, budgeting). However, none of the surveyed university studies explicitly list financial security/guidance as a client-reported need. We flag this as important (and obvious from context) but unspecified in the cited literature.
6. Child Custody and Welfare. For divorcing parents, children’s needs are critical. Stanford research on custody law argues judges should factor in each child’s “psychological and emotional needs” and facilitate visitation. While not a direct survey of parents’ requests, this underscores that custody clarity and children’s well-being are high priorities. In practice, parents likely want stable custody arrangements and support that serve the child’s best interests. (The sources focus on child welfare policy rather than client surveys, so we infer “child support/clarity” as a top concern.)
7. Affordable Legal Help. Cost is a well-known barrier. Stanford’s Access to Justice analysis and Harvard news both highlight that limited legal aid often leaves many unrepresented. In low-income divorce cases, affordability of attorneys is repeatedly emphasized: Rhode et al. (Stanford) call out the “nation’s shameful level of unmet legal needs”. Thus having “low-cost or pro bono legal services” is a clear need implied by these studies (though we already cite legal help generally above).
8. Privacy and Confidentiality. Many people want to keep their personal matters private. While commonly discussed in practice, none of the university sources specifically address privacy. (No study in this set reports on how much “privacy” divorcing parties mention.) We therefore list this as a plausible need but not documented in the reviewed research.
9. Fair Asset Division. Equitable splitting of property is an obvious concern. However, in the provided sources (which focus on procedure/access), there is no explicit mention of clients’ views on fairness. No surveyed study from these universities cites “fair division” as a reported need. We note it as an expected desire (and a topic in legal literature) but unspecified by the cited sources.
10. Mental Health Services. Divorce can trigger depression and anxiety, so professional support would seem needed. Yet, the university studies in question (mostly legal or economic) do not report on demand for therapy or counseling. We include this as an important gap: although mental health is well-known to be affected by divorce, explicit references to counseling needs are absent from these sources.