Challenges Faced by Women in UAE: An Analysis of Divorce Trends

This report delves into the escalating divorce rates in the United Arab Emirates, highlighting how traditional practices like arranged marriages, polygamy, and cultural norms affect women. It discusses societal influences such as family interference, economic changes, and legal frameworks like talaq that contribute to these trends. The study suggests solutions including delaying marriage age, enhancing women's education, and reforming laws on polygamy. Government measures have been enacted to manage divorce rates by implementing pre-marital contracts, although their effectiveness is debated.

Running head: SOCIAL AND BEHAVIORIAL SCIENCE
SOCIAL AND BEHAVIORIAL SCIENCE
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Executive Summary
The following report gives an overview of the life of the women in the United Arab Emirates
where most of the women are still underprivileged of their individual human rights. The report
roughly encompasses a discussion on the life of the divorced women in the country and deals
with the causes that are responsible for such mishaps. The report searches the source of the issue
and presents an overview of the livelihood of the women of the nation. The report also contains a
self- reflection on the issue and recommends certain major steps that can enrich the state and
conditions of the life of these women in the country.

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Table of Contents
Introduction..........................................................................................................................2
Results of the Study.............................................................................................................2
Description.......................................................................................................................2
Understanding..................................................................................................................3
Influence..........................................................................................................................3
Predictions.......................................................................................................................4
Self-Reflections...................................................................................................................4
Observations....................................................................................................................4
Solutions..........................................................................................................................4
Measures..........................................................................................................................4
References............................................................................................................................6

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Introduction
The United Arab Emirates although is one of the prosperous nations of the world due to
its oil and natural gas resources is facing a huge number social challenges with the span of time.
With the progress of technology, the country has industrialized a lot in the recent modern eras.
At the same time, the rate of social problems is increasing with the improvement of the country.
This report discourses one such major rising issue that the country is fighting in the 21st century.
The rate of divorce in UAE is rising in a shocking rate where the influence of Islam is prominent.
The following report based on the interviews of women of the country highlights the
causes in the increase of the rate of divorces in the families UAE where the ethics of Islam, the
strong bonding of the family and the sense of tradition are regarded as a value worthy for raising
family.
The report concludes by discussing several issues that led to the cause of divorces. The
self-reflection part of the report analyzes the exchange of social theory about divorces which are
at times considered as a social stigma.
Results of the Study
Description
While conducting the interview, some several issues that came up as common factors
leading to the divorces in the UAE are interference of the family into the matters of relationship
between husband and wife, early marriage, domination of the husband over his spouse, marriage
at an earlier age, sexual affairs prior to the marriage, domestic violence and at times the social
stigma of being a divorcee (Al Gharaibeh & Bromfield, 2012). The cases of divorces are raising
an alarming situation in the country as divorces in certain families of Gulf is not at all

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permissible where the strong bonding in the family is considered as most valuable. According to
a study of Al Qaisi and Al Majali (2000), the excessive parental intrusion, lack of compromise
on important issues, misunderstanding of marriage responsibilities contributes to the case of
divorces. Other than this early marriage, short term engagements and communication skills
immensely affects the life of the couples and gradually this led to the divorce (Khamis, 2016).
Understanding
The rapid changes in the life of the Emirati families have greatly changed the view and outlooks
of marriage. In most of the traditional Emirati family, the marriages are mostly arranged by the
head of the family at a young age (Anser, 2013). According to the customs, the first cousins
would marry each other and they will stay in the stretched family home. This is done just to save
the outflow of the family wealth and here a demand of dowry is a must. After this the couples
especially the wife is persuaded to conceive a child just to secure her status and position as the
wife of the family. This is where the life of the woman ends as she now gets engaged in the
family affairs (Al-Darmaki et al., 2017). This opportunity is utilized by the husband to led life
with other women and the government also permits it as the law say that a man can marry up to
four women at a time but his desire for sexuality must be limited within his first wife.
Influence
In a country like UAE where the people mainly believes in religion, the cases of divorces must
be handled with utmost care by the government to increase the social status of the women in the
country. It is important that the government of UAE must abolish laws that permits polygamy
and talaq system in the society (Wang, & Kassam, 2016). The parents must change their notions
about their future of the daughter and must educate their daughters so that they can become self-
sufficient.

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Predictions
In the modern eras, with the improvement and modernization of the technology, the rate of
divorce has amplified in the country as the country is still developing and progressing. There are
also huge changes in the recent lifestyles of the people of the country as they are developing
themselves from simple farmers to rich business men (Bromfield, 2014).
Self-Reflections
Observations
While taking interview it has been observed by me that the rate of divorces is becoming a grave
concern for the government of the country. Even though in the past it was not an option for
leaving unhappy marriage, currently, the option of divorce has come up as a reason to escape
from the torture of the marriage life. The research showed most of the early and arranged
marriages are the reasons for the divorces in the country (Bromfield, 2014).
Solutions
The best solutions here according to me should be that the decision of the marriage must be
taken by the husband and wife instead of the father negotiating the whole process. The first and
the most crucial step that can be implemented to check the rate of divorces is to stop the early
marriage and it should be arranged only if both the man and the woman mutually agrees.
Measures
The UAE government has taken preventive steps to regulate the rate of divorces in the
country in the recent years. The government has applied laws that control the cases of marriage
in country. These laws although executed are not operative enough to check the rate of divorces
in the country. The government has made a rule that before the marriage the husband and the

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wife must sign a contract that states their mutual understanding of the responsibilities after
marriage.

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References
Al Gharaibeh, F., & Bromfield, N. F. (2012). An analysis of divorce cases in the United Arab
Emirates: A rising trend. Journal of Divorce & Remarriage, 53(6), 436-452.
Al-Darmaki, F. R., Ahammed, S., Hassane, S. H., Seif Abdullah, A., Yaaqeib, S. I., & Dodeen,
H. (2017). Antecedents and Consequences of Marital Satisfaction in an Emirati Sample:
A Structural Equation Model Analysis. Marriage & Family Review, 53(4), 365-387.
Anser, L. (2013). Divorce in the Arab Gulf Countries. A major Challenge.
Bromfield, N. (2014). Interviews with divorced women from the United Arab Emirates: a rare
glimpse into lived experiences. Families, Relationships and Societies, 3(3), 339-354.
Khamis, F. G. (2016). Multilevel Mixed Analysis and Mapping on Divorce Problem in UAE.
Wang, Y., & Kassam, M. (2016). Indicators of Social Change in the UAE: College Students’
Attitudes Toward Love, Marriage and Family. Journal of Arabian Studies, 6(1), 74-94.

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