Children and How They are Affected by Divorce
In years past, the American Dream for most young girls’ is to grow up and be married to Prince Charming and to “Live Happily Ever After!” Although this may be expected - it is rarely fulfilled. Marriage is the legal and binding union between a man and woman. Yet when couples marry, they vow to stay by their partner’s side ‘till death do us part.’ Currently that vow seems to have little or no value in today’s society. The current statistics for survival of marriage are quite grim. The divorce rate in the United States is somewhere between 50 percent and a startling 67 percent. (KSL News) One contributing factor the growing epidemic of divorce is the parting of different family members or the breakup of the family unit, as well as effect it may have upon the children or the other spouse.
When the family is broken up it can lead to divorce and ultimately many negative implications. It may have effect on the mental stability as well as create even more conflict and tension between others. Research evidence has shown that marital distress and conflict within a marriage causes a wide range of negative effects on the children of the feuding spouses. Many of the effects upon the children include depression, isolations, social inadequacy, mental health issues and academic status decreases. A study conducted in 1991suggests that out of 13000 people, the children that come from a divorced family tended to have poor academic performance and displayed more behavior problems. Some American couples suggest the divorce may be a way to solve their problems quickly and perhaps, more easily, rather than taking the time to work things out through counseling and other alternatives.
When divorce occurs it does not just happen between those that are married, everyone in relation to the divorcee’s are effected. This suggests a “community divorce,“ and presents many other dilemmas. Community divorces contribute to conflicts between mutual friends and create tension between certain family members. More often than not, children are in the middle of the divorce and feel that it may their fault. A lot of the time, the children’s welfare is not properly taken into account. Although some situations allow for flexibility, for example: growing up in an abusive home versus the separation of two parents. Nonetheless,...
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...just the separation of feelings of love between to people - it is the parting of a lifestyle and stability for the children involved.
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The first study to be considered is a qualitative study which spanned a 25 year period and looked at 131 children from divorced families of the 1970’s. It was specifically concerned with growth and development (psychologically and socially) of these children post divorce and had extensive follow-up interviews with both parents and children at 18 months, 5, 10 and 25 year marks. At the 25 year follow-up a comparison group of adult children from intact families who had otherwise similar backgrounds were also interviewed. Some of these “intact” families were ideal while others were filled with conflict, most were somewhere in the middle. This study found a casual relationship between divorce itself and the well-being of the children which was significant all the way into adulthood. The study found that parental conflicts from before the divorce were not dominant in the children’s memories but unhappiness was related mostly to the separation itself (most children in this study had no expectations of the breakup prior to it occurring). The exception to this is when violent events occurred as with 25% of c...
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Most people, when thinking about divorce, worry about the impact that it has on the children that are involved. Even though children are most likely better off if totally incompatible parents separate instead of staying together, divorce is about loss and change, and it is still hard for children. Everyone knows that divorce has its effects on children. There are three different sources that try to explain these effects. Graham Blaine Jr. states that divorce is a threat to all children, whereas Rhona Mahony states that divorce is not always the cause of behavioral or academic problems in children coming from divorced families. Yvette Walczak and Sheila Burns state that the extent of the damage can be determined by the parents and their methods of explanation to the children.
Academic research has shown that 41% of all marriages end before their 30th year of marriage (Battams, 2013). Many studies dispute the fact that divorces only effects children psychologically, but this paper will focus on other important factors including emotional and behavioural effects along with short and long term effects a parental divorce will have on children. The purpose of this paper is to present the various types of ways that children cope with the stress and depression of a divorce. Of these various ways in which children cope with the stress of divorce, their are coping strategies that are proven to treat children effected by a divorce.
Divorce is a very common word in today's society. According to the American Heritage Dictionary, "divorce is the legal dissolution of a marriage or a complete or radical severance of closely connected things"(Pickett, 2000). This dissolution of marriage has increased very rapidly in the past fifty years. In 1950 the ratio of divorce to marriage was one in every four; in 1977 that statistic became one in two. Currently one in every two first marriages results in divorce. In second marriages that figure is considerably higher, with a 67% average (National Vital Statistics Report, 2001). One critical aspect of divorce is often not taken into consideration: How it affects children. Every year 1.1 million children are affected by divorce (Benjamin, 2000). Children from divorce or separation often exhibit behavioral and long-term adjustment problems (Kelly, 2000). Throughout this paper I will discuss divorces effects on children at different age levels, how they react, and what can be done to help them.
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Considering that over 45 percent of marriages today end in divorce, it is crucial to understand recent research regarding the positive and negative effects of divorce on children’s mental health. Studies have shown that although children of broken homes generally have more adjustment difficulties than children of intact families, the distinction between these two groups appears to be much less significant than previously assumed (1). In the case of parental separation, studies suggest that children undergo a decline in the standard of living, exhibit poorer academic performance, engage in increased alcohol/ substance abuse, as well as experience diminishing rates of employment. However, underlying factors must be taken into consideration when assessing the long-term consequence of divorce on children, which happens to be resiliency rather than dysfunction (1). These key contextual factors that influence post-divorce adjustment include parenting styles, custody arrangements, age of the child, financial stability, and most importantly, the nature and magnitude of parental conflict. Persistent, unsettled conflict or violence is linked to greater emotional anxiety and psychological maladjustment in children, whereas negative symptoms like fear and insecurity are reduced when parents resolve their conflicts through compromise and negotiation. Although divorce unveils many risk factors involving a child’s health, it may be more beneficial rather than detrimental to children living in highly discorded families, in which children are able to acquire externalizing and internalizing behaviors (1). The development of coping skills and living in a supportive and empathetic environment are two crucial components for children to manage their ne...
Myers-Walls, J., & Karuppaswamy, N. (2013). The effect of divorce on children: What makes a difference. Retrieved from https://www.extension.purdue.edu/providerparent/family-child relationships/effectdivorce.htm
In the world we live in today, divorce has unfortunately become a normal thing in our lives. Many married couples are getting divorced for many reasons; problems in the marriage, either a spouse having an affair, a loss of feelings, and many other types of complications. Many divorces involve children who are young and due to their age do not understand what is really going on. We all know someone who has dealt with divorce. Children are the ones who are typically affected the most by the divorce and they will have to learn to cope with their parent’s divorce at such a young age, affecting them in positive or negative ways.
Website: Niolon, Ph.D., R. (2010, September 19). Children of Divorce and Adjustment. Retrieved September 5, 2017, from http://www.psychpage.com/family/childrenadjust.html. PsychPage 2010-2017 Interview: Redmond, J., Ferber, D., & Love To Know. (2017).