Growing Up With Divorced Parents

How does single-parenting affect children at an early age proceeding into their teens?

Many children grow up in a broken family household, who were raised with divorced parents, (now only one parent lives in the house with the child/children). Many people, including myself, have grown up in a single parented household due to divorce or separation. Researching this topic will help better understand why children growing up with only one parent may act and behave a certain way due to social, emotional, and cognitive problems. Studying this topic is necessary for people growing up with one parent like myself, it will enlighten readers ways to how growing up with divorced parents can greatly affect children, and how it can affect one later on in

A custody battle is the main reason for mental health issues in a child. With divorce comes the dispute of who gets custody over the child. Children going through custody battles are often confused as to why they must now decide between two parents. “From the outset of their involvement in custody resolution, courts have attempted to develop legal standards for resolving disputes with serious and complex mental health considerations. Today, in most jurisdictions, a dominant standard has emerged -- the "best interests of the child" standard (Supp. 1986).” Because the parents are so concerned with their own conflicts, they neglect the idea of their own child’s problems. This leads to emotional stress, usually in a teenager. Drinking, smoking, and rebelling are acts more commonly seen in teenagers whose parents are divorced (Mitchell, A). “About 3 percent of children and 9 percent of adolescents suffer from symptoms of depression that include a lack of interest in activities that usually bring them joy (Wallace).” Parental conflicts can sometimes become so overwhelming that teens begin to harm themselves, run away or become suicidal

For two nights I spent the night at my friends’ house that lives with both biological parents, and another friends’ house that lives with only one biological parent due to divorce when she was eight years old. While I was at my first friends’ house I noticed that they sat together as a family to eat dinner, conversations were held and after dinner they all pitched in to clean up, however, at my second friends’ house her mother sat in the living room watching the television and occasionally going on her phone at dinner while my friend, and I went to her room to eat. I asked her if it was because of my visit that we were allowed to eat in her room, however, she informed me that it is like that every night and little do they ever sit together as a family. Also, while I was spending the night at my friends’ house that has both biological parents living together I observed their involvement in her education. They had her report card hanging on the fridge, and every so often they asked her how her current grades were and if she needed help in any of her classes, and if she needed assistance to come to them, they even asked me if I needed any help in school. In contrast, at my other friends house who only lives with her mother, not once did her mother ask her about school, grades, or if she needed any type of help with school related issues. The very last thing I observed was their night time