DIVORCE STIGMA IN THE CHURCH: IMPLICATIONS ON THE WELLBEING OF DIVORCEES IN EVANGELICAL CHURCHES IN NAKURU COUNTY, KENYA

Abstract

Divorce among Christian couples is a growing reality in the Church across the world. Regardless of the circumstances that led to divorce, Christians should extend a helping hand to divorcees since there is no easy solution to human problems. However, the church is often seen to be out of step with the reality of society with regards to its response to the issue of divorce. This study sought to investigate the prevalence and manifestation of stigma of divorce in the church and its differential ramifications on the spiritual, social, and mental wellbeing of divorcees in Evangelical Churches in Nakuru County, Kenya. The study applied quantitative research methodology to gather and analyse data. A structured questionnaire was administered to 121 divorcees across 11 sub-counties through snow-ball sampling method. Data was gathered using a structured questionnaire. Percentage frequencies, mean and standard deviation scores were used to summarize data while inferential analysis was performed using correlation technique in SPSS. The study established moderate prevalence of stigma of divorce in the churches. There was a differential effect of stigma of divorce on psychosocial wellbeing dimensions, with the strongest effect size found on social wellbeing. Conclusion was drawn that divorcees experienced stigma of divorce in the church, albeit at muted prevalence levels. The study demonstrated that the influence of stigma of divorce was not uniform across spiritual, mental, and social wellbeing of divorcees. This pointed to a more nuanced understanding of the complex ways in which stigma in the church affects divorcee wellbeing.