Introduction

Abstract

In contemporary Britain, high rates of marital dissolution mean that many individuals spend one or more periods of their lives as separated or divorced people. Furthermore, the rising incidence of cohabitation means that at any given time, in addition to formerly married people, there is a substantial number of former cohabitees in the population. Until now, research has tended to focus on the formerly married rather than on formerly partnered people more generally, and has also concentrated on formerly married parents. Our book, however, is oriented towards formerly partnered people in general. Our main aim is to examine the experiences, identities, attitudes to repartnering and repartnering behaviour of formerly partnered people in a society in which profound changes have been, and are, taking place (or, at least, are argued to have been taking place) in relation to intimate couple relationships. Of course, continuities in ideals relating to ‘marriage’ also form part of the context in which formerly partnered people’s identities and orientations towards relationships are, or are not, revised after separation, as do their own relationship histories.