How Divorce Affects Children

Divorces in the United States are often only thought about from a single perspective, that being the two spouses involved. However, children are severely affected by the aftermath of divorces probably even more so than the parents, especially on the long-term basis. About one third of children experience this fallout, and of those divorces only a third claim to have done all they could to save their marriages (Holst). Based on middle-class cultural norms in modern society, both the psychological and physical effects on children from parental separation constitute many factors during and after the divorce.
Assessing consequences of divorce on children are both subjective and problematic because many factors and personal experiences are taken into account. Overall, the psychological context of this event is traumatizing for the child, usually to a greater degree than between the parents that are separating. However, the negative effects of divorce on children are not inevitable. “They either undergo the major emotional disturbances to a point where it disrupts their development, or they learn to manage the stresses in order to cope with the situation and emotions that accompany” (Judy Mann), mainly through parental intention and intervention.
Factors that affect the extent of disturbance are subjective to each situation. For example, the adjustment process after separation depends on the relationship between parents prior to divorce, the ages of the children, whether or not siblings are present, and how often they will see each parent (Intro to Sociology). Since marriage has an increasing tendency of evaluating its relationships in terms of personal satisfaction, less on status or images across generations, children’s perspect...

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...ned by how our modern culture continues to ignore and downplay the negative effects of divorce on children.

Works Cited

Ayalon, O. (1993). Chain reaction: children and divorce. London: Jessica Kingsley.

Emery, R. E. (1988). Marriage, divorce, and children's adjustment. Newbury Park,
Calif.: Sage Publications.

Giddens, A. (2012). Families and Intimate Relationships. Introduction to sociology (8th ed., ). New York: W.W. Norton & Co..

Holst, W. A. (2006). How the 'good divorce' affects children. National Catholic Reporter,
42(21), 18.

Karoly, P., Wolchik, S. (1988). Children of divorce: perspectives on adjustment. New
York, N.Y.: Gardner Press.

Mann, J. (1986, Jun 25). How divorce affects children. The Washington Post (1974
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