Simulating Separation: Teaching Relationship Dissolution, Inequality, and Children’s Well-Being through Role Play

• In Event: Teaching and Learning Symposium Roundtable Session
  In Refereed Roundtable (90 minute): Table 4: Sociology in Polarized Times

Abstract

Relationship dissolution is a common yet pedagogically challenging topic in the sociology of family, particularly when addressing the intersection of emotions, law, inequality, and children’s well-being. This teaching activity introduces a structured, in-class simulation designed to help students analyze relationship dissolution as a socially embedded and stratified process rather than a purely private choice. Implemented in an upper-level Sociology of Family course, the simulation engages students in role-playing couples navigating separation through two institutional lenses: a counseling session and a family law consultation.
Students are assigned to diverse scenarios that vary by class, race, marital status, parental status, religion, and economic stability, including married and unmarried couples, co-parents, blended families, and low-income cohabitors. Across two short role-play stages, students confront emotional concerns, cultural expectations, parenting dilemmas, legal status, asset division, custody, and financial consequences. “Twist cards” introduce unexpected events (e.g., job relocation, hidden debt, child distress), reinforcing the role of structural constraints and uncertainty in family transitions.
Rather than performing the role play publicly, students synthesize their experiences through brief analytical presentations and a guided debrief that centers on inequality, institutional power, and children’s wellbeing. This simulation encourages perspective-taking, applies core sociological concepts (family diversity, stratification, institutional regulation), and deepens students’ understanding of how social position shapes the costs and consequences of relationship dissolution—especially for children. This activity can be adapted to different class sizes and formats.

Author

• Yingling Liu, North Central College