Does Divorce Cause Low Self Esteem in Children?
Does Divorce Cause Low Self-Esteem in Children?
According to statistics, half of all American children will witness the divorce (Finley & Schwartz, 2007). Of all children born to married parents this year, 50% will experience the divorce of their parents before they reach their 18th birthday. The parents’ divorce marks a turning point in a child’s life. Parents usually divorce when they feel they can no longer live together because of fighting and anger or their love for each other has changed. Sometimes it is due to serious problems such as drinking, spousal abuse, or gambling addiction. Parental divorce is a very stressful event for all children and many of them are not prepared for it.
Consequently, divorce can have an important life changing impact on the well-being and development of children. One important effect that divorce has is the increased risk of emotional and behavioral problems in children. Children from divorced families are likely to experience loneliness and insecurity. For instance, they may feel abandoned or rejected by their parents. Furthermore, children who have seen their parents’ divorce may also struggle with low self-esteem. Those children believe that they are the cause of their parents’ divorce and they build up a deep sense of guilt and shame. Even though it is clearly not their fault, they will keep blaming themselves for something that they have done or said (Ross & Wyne, 2010). So I ask, does divorce cause low self-esteem in children and that continues into adulthood?
In the first article “Parental Depression and Divorce and Adult Children’s Well-Being: The Role of Family Unpredictability” by Lisa Thomson Ross and Stacie Wyne research had shown that children of divorce had experienced anxiety and depression. For example, Ross and Wyne found adolescents with negative interpretations of their parents’ divorce reported more disruptive behavior than their peers from divorced homes who reported more positive divorce
According to statistics, half of all American children will witness the divorce (Finley & Schwartz, 2007). Of all children born to married parents this year, 50% will experience the divorce of their parents before they reach their 18th birthday. The parents’ divorce marks a turning point in a child’s life. Parents usually divorce when they feel they can no longer live together because of fighting and anger or their love for each other has changed. Sometimes it is due to serious problems such as drinking, spousal abuse, or gambling addiction. Parental divorce is a very stressful event for all children and many of them are not prepared for it.
Consequently, divorce can have an important life changing impact on the well-being and development of children. One important effect that divorce has is the increased risk of emotional and behavioral problems in children. Children from divorced families are likely to experience loneliness and insecurity. For instance, they may feel abandoned or rejected by their parents. Furthermore, children who have seen their parents’ divorce may also struggle with low self-esteem. Those children believe that they are the cause of their parents’ divorce and they build up a deep sense of guilt and shame. Even though it is clearly not their fault, they will keep blaming themselves for something that they have done or said (Ross & Wyne, 2010). So I ask, does divorce cause low self-esteem in children and that continues into adulthood?
In the first article “Parental Depression and Divorce and Adult Children’s Well-Being: The Role of Family Unpredictability” by Lisa Thomson Ross and Stacie Wyne research had shown that children of divorce had experienced anxiety and depression. For example, Ross and Wyne found adolescents with negative interpretations of their parents’ divorce reported more disruptive behavior than their peers from divorced homes who reported more positive divorce
References: Bjarnason, D. T., & Arnarsson, D. A. (2009). Joint Physical Custody and Communication with Parents: A Cross-National Study of Children in 36 Western Countries. Journal of Comparative Family Studies, n/a, 872-889. Retrieved May 14, 2012, from the Ebscohost database. Finley, G. E., & Schwartz, S. J. (2007). Father Involvement and Long-term Young Adult Outcomes: The Differential Contributions of Divorce and Gender. Family Court Review, 45(4), 573-587. Retrieved May 14, 2012, from the Ebscohost database. Ross, L. T., & Wyne, S. (2010). Parental Depression and Divorce and Adult Children 's Well-Being: The Role of Family Unpredicatability. Springer Science+ Business Media, 7(19), 757-761. Retrieved May 14, 2012, from the Ebscohost database. Soblewski, D. J., & Amato, D. P. (2007). Parents ' Discord and Divorce, Parent-Child Relationships and Subjective Well-Being in Early Adulthood: Is Feeling Close to Two Parents Always Better than Feeling Close to One?. The University of North Carolina Press, 85(3), 1105-1124. Retrieved May 14, 2012, from the Ebscohost database.