Wouldn’t it be nice if you could divorce-proof your marriage – if you knew what to avoid in order to protect your relationship from becoming so unhealthy that it is no longer viable? Conflict in marriages is not only normal, but it can also be productive if we know how to navigate it – it alerts us something is wrong, so that we can address it. The outcome of the interaction depends on how we address it, however. Marriage researcher Dr. John Gottman, who has been studying couples for over 40 years, has identified five markers that, if they go without intervention, are predictive of divorce.