It has been a long held opinion - especially among husbands - that wives do better when it comes to the division of assets in divorce. The accepted image has been of the rapacious wife scooping the pool financially and going off with the matrimonial home and the children, while her impoverished ex has to endure an irrecoverable downsizing of his lifestyle as the result of her demands.

Recently published academic research, however, has turned that perception on its head. Professor Stephen Jenkins, director of the Institute for Social and Economic Research, carried out a study, combining data from 14 British Household Panel Surveys from 1991 to 2004 with additional information from five European surveys, in order to calculate the respective financial consequences for divorcing partners.

Contrary to popular belief, it turns out that the income of divorced husbands rises by an average of 25% post divorce, while that of the wives suffers a dramatic fall. Obviously, this will not be the result in every case, depending on individual circumstances. Although the survey found that 9% of men are reduced to poverty after a marital split, three times as many women find themselves in the poverty trap.

Jenkins notes that the financial consequences of divorce are frequently related to whether or not there are children of the family. The traditional role of the father as breadwinner, while the mother occupies herself with the home and the family, persists in many marriages. This means that it is true that the mother is more likely to have the children living with her after separation, while it is assumed that the father will contribute financially by way of maintenance payments.

It is common for mothers to sacrifice career prospects to be the principal carers for their families, even when they continue working. Any woman who has attempted to combine a job outside the home with motherhood will be all too aware of the problems. Employers are not noted for a sympathetic approach towards women with children whose needs must take precedence over the demands of the job.

Unfortunately for many mothers and children, the assumption that fathers will continue to provide for them after the breakdown of a marriage is not always matched in reality. Indeed, it will come as no surprise to family lawyers to learn that the researchers found that only 31% of divorced fathers actually make maintenance payments.

"The difference between the sexes is stark," says Jenkins. "But this is not so much a gender thing as a parent thing. The key differences are not between men and women but between fathers and mothers."

The relative poverty of divorced women remains a feature of their lives. They are certainly more likely to be the losers when they arrive at the age of retirement. If it considers it just to do so, a family court can make an order sharing a husband’s pension entitlement as part of the financial settlement in a divorce. But men are frequently in a position to build up increased pension benefits for themselves after separation; on the other hand, elderly divorcees may find themselves left with very little to live on.

So perhaps we can forget the myth that it is wives who get the best deal after the marriage has broken down.