For men who remarry in their 40?s and 50?s, under what circumstances
did they first meet and develop a relationship with their second wife?
 I?m specifically interested in the pool of middle-class,
well-educated men, age 40-59 and living in the U.S.
  
1. Of all men who are divorced or widowed by age 40, what percentage
remarry between age 40 and age 59?

2. Age disparity:  For this pool of remarried men, what percentage
remarry a woman at least 10 years younger?

3. Timeframe of new relationship:  For this pool of remarried men,
what percentage of these men initiated an intimate platonic or
intimate sexual relationship with their second wife: a) before the
man?s first marriage; b) while the man was still married to his first
wife; c) while the man was separated from but not legally divorced
from his first wife; d) not until the man was legally divorced from
his first wife; e) not until the man had been divorced from his first
wife for at least 12 months?
 
4. Circumstances in which they met: For this pool of remarried men,
what percentage of these men first met their second wife as:  a) a
co-worker in the man?s workplace or work-related travel; b) a
neighbor; c) introduced by a mutual friend; d) met at a friend?s party
or wedding; e) met at a bar; f) met through internet or other
dating/matching service?

5. I?m also interest in a subjective evaluation: How many of these
second marriages are ?healthy? relationships?  What is the divorce
rate for second marriages?

Obviously the available statistics may not be broken out into the
categories as I?ve defined them; I?ve simply provided this detail to
give specificity to my question.  I?m interested in this information
as a matter of curiosity, not formal research.  All suggestions
welcome!

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Clarification of Question by larryg999-ga on 27 Sep 2006 22:14 PDT

I've found the answer to part (5).  Also, as a clarification, I'm
looking for "survey" results that include percentages, rather than
statistical data with a large sample size.  Any suggestions for
recently published books that explore these questions?

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Request for Question Clarification by hedgie-ga on 29 Sep 2006 19:38 PDT

Hi Larry 

That is a pretty wide list of questions. Best source, next to
interviweing a marriage counselor, would be books on the topic, such
as

... The average second marriage lasts only 4.5, years, the authors
say, so many of us are struggling. Much of the book is devoted to
transcripts from couples in counseling. You'll identify with many of
the challenges they discuss.

Would list of few books on the topis be a sufficient answer?

Plus perhaps few quotes:

89. Marriage
On second marriages: "The triumph of hope over experience."
Boswell: Life

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Clarification of Question by larryg999-ga on 05 Oct 2006 09:57 PDT

I think I'd like to research this question myself, and then repost.  Thanks.