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For years, it's been reported that Utah has a higher-than-average divorce rate, but Census data also shows Utah's men and women are among the least likely to be divorced. So how does that work?

It turns out that Utahns get remarried quickly and those second, and sometimes third, unions seem to stick.

As a consequence, Utah has the fifth-lowest percentage of divorced men, at 8.2 percent, and the fourth lowest percentage for women, at 10.2.

Our neighbor to the west, Nevada, tops the nation when it comes to the previously married, with 12.9 percent of men and 14.9 percent of women. If you are wondering, women are more likely to be divorced than men in every state.

What makes Utah unique is that its residents get married earlier than the rest of the nation. Because of that, it has a slew of young divorcees, who are then far more likely to re-enter the dating world than someone whose marriage falls apart later in life.

"The age in which you divorce is one of those factors in the probability of remarriage," said Alan Hawkins, a family studies professor at Brigham Young University.

And The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints plays a major factor in all of Utah's marriage and divorce statistics. The Mormon faith encourages young people to marry and puts great significance on the institution of marriage. That puts pressure on Mormons who are divorced or widowed to get back into the dating pool.

That may explain why Utah has an above-average percentage of people who are or have ever been married. According to Census data from 2013, 73 percent of Utah women and 68 percent of Utah men have been married at least once, while nationwide, 70 percent of women and 64 percent of men have said "I do."

Eric Johnson, a divorce attorney with Utah Family Law, notes the Mormon effect.

"There is still a large LDS population where marriage is taken more seriously than by others, perhaps because they believe it is not only for time but for all eternity."