Is there life after divorce? Contrary to the grim tales of impoverishment and emotional emptiness that are often identified with divorce, a new study by a Boston University sociologist shows that divorce has its positive side.

In her recent book, “Divorce Talk: Men and Women Make Sense of Personal Relationships,” published by Rutgers University Press, Catherine Kohler Riessman challenges the view, both in the popular and scholarly press, that marital dissolution is one of the major social problems of the age.

“When marriages end,” Riessman writes, “women and men construct different lives, distinguished by gender-related pressures and opportunities, and both groups claim to discover new aspects of themselves. Divorce research to date has been silent about its positive aspects. In a word, the divorced say it isn’t all bad.”

Until recently, “till death do us part” was a promise that reflected reality: Marriages usually dissolved with the death of a spouse. But within the past 20 years, divorce has surpassed death as the major cause of martial dissolution, allowing for new martial possibilities.

Riessman’s book is based on interviews with 104 people who are divorced or are in the process of getting a divorce. Some describe experiencing considerable stress, but also speak of the benefits of life after divorce — the independence that allows them to manage daily activities on their own, to nurture social relationships, and to develop stronger identities.

Women, who on the whole suffer financial hardship from divorce, also express feeling “zest and delight” with what many describe as their post-divorce “freedom from subordination.” For the first time, many women control their own finances and manage their own households. They develop a new self-confidence as they emerge from the home and enter the work force.

Men tend to interpret divorce less positively than women. Some see divorce as reflecting their own failures. When asked what benefits were derived from divorce, 15 percent of the men said there were none, while every woman in the study reported some benefit.