How Does Divorce Affect Children
How Divorce Affects Children Divorce not only affects a couple that is seeking a divorce, but the children as well. Divorce is hurting American children very badly. Each year over a million children suffer the divorce of their parents and by 1999, half of all American children reaching their eighteenth birthday and who were born to married parents will have experienced the divorce of their parents. The devastating effects of divorce on children just might provide leaders with the motivation to start a cultural revolution, or at least to question the direction the nation has taken. The plight of children may give Americans the moral courage to overcome a fear of raising this delicate subject. If Americans do not overcome this fear, we will lock ourselves into inaction and lock the nation into a downward spiral of weakening effects and diminishing social capital because divorce
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diminishes children’s future competence in all the major institutions. Parents offer security and support that no other force in life can match up to.
One draws comfort and strength from their bond and garners a motivation knowing that there’s always a force to pull on by. The effects of a bonded family, sharing healthy relationships is known to have positive effects on the overall personality and the coping mechanisms that a person adopts in life. Thus when a divorce happens, the effects of the same do not remain confined to the couple alone but extend to the children as well. It is important to note that the effects of divorce on children are dependent on certain characteristics which include the relationship that the children shared with their parents, the duration of the conflicts that ensued between the parents as well as the ability of the parents to give time and fulfill the needs of the children before and during the divorce proceeding. The stronger the bond, the worse the effects. The longer the conflicts, the more the effects. And an ability to fulfill the emotional and physical needs of the child, the lesser the
effects. In family life, divorce permanently weakens the relationship between children and parents. It leads to destructive ways of handling conflict, diminishes social competence, leads to early loss of virginity, and it diminishes young adults’ sense of masculinity or femininity. It leads to more trouble in dating, to more cohabitation, to higher divorce rates later in life, to higher expectations of divorce, and to less desire for children.
In religious life, divorce diminishes the frequency of worship of God, and recourse to him in prayer.
In education, divorce diminishes learning capacities and high school and college attainment.
In the marketplace, divorce reduces household income and massively cuts the life wealth of individuals.
In government and citizenship, divorce massively increases crime rates, abuse and neglect rates, and the use of drugs.
Also, divorce weakens the health of children; even their life spans will be shortened.
Finally it increases behavioral, emotional and psychiatric risks, including suicide. The effects of divorce on children’s hearts, minds and souls range from severe to mild, from seemingly small to massive, and from short term to long term. None of the effects apply to every child of divorce, nor is it likely that any one child has suffered all the effects. Nonetheless, the one million children who see their parents divorce each year are effected by the trauma. There is no way to predict how any particular child will be effected or to what extent, but it is possible to predict its effects on society. They are numerous and very serious. Statistics of how divorce affects children are staggering. If one studies these statistics of the divorce rate in America, it shows that more than 50% of marriages end in divorce. Divorce statistics also support the fact that children who witness their parents divorce, are more likely to witness the divorce of the subsequent marriages that their parents might have. The major issue is no longer what the ill effects of divorce are, but the depth and length of persistence of these effects on children, and on their future children and grandchildren.
diminishes children’s future competence in all the major institutions. Parents offer security and support that no other force in life can match up to.
One draws comfort and strength from their bond and garners a motivation knowing that there’s always a force to pull on by. The effects of a bonded family, sharing healthy relationships is known to have positive effects on the overall personality and the coping mechanisms that a person adopts in life. Thus when a divorce happens, the effects of the same do not remain confined to the couple alone but extend to the children as well. It is important to note that the effects of divorce on children are dependent on certain characteristics which include the relationship that the children shared with their parents, the duration of the conflicts that ensued between the parents as well as the ability of the parents to give time and fulfill the needs of the children before and during the divorce proceeding. The stronger the bond, the worse the effects. The longer the conflicts, the more the effects. And an ability to fulfill the emotional and physical needs of the child, the lesser the
effects. In family life, divorce permanently weakens the relationship between children and parents. It leads to destructive ways of handling conflict, diminishes social competence, leads to early loss of virginity, and it diminishes young adults’ sense of masculinity or femininity. It leads to more trouble in dating, to more cohabitation, to higher divorce rates later in life, to higher expectations of divorce, and to less desire for children.
In religious life, divorce diminishes the frequency of worship of God, and recourse to him in prayer.
In education, divorce diminishes learning capacities and high school and college attainment.
In the marketplace, divorce reduces household income and massively cuts the life wealth of individuals.
In government and citizenship, divorce massively increases crime rates, abuse and neglect rates, and the use of drugs.
Also, divorce weakens the health of children; even their life spans will be shortened.
Finally it increases behavioral, emotional and psychiatric risks, including suicide. The effects of divorce on children’s hearts, minds and souls range from severe to mild, from seemingly small to massive, and from short term to long term. None of the effects apply to every child of divorce, nor is it likely that any one child has suffered all the effects. Nonetheless, the one million children who see their parents divorce each year are effected by the trauma. There is no way to predict how any particular child will be effected or to what extent, but it is possible to predict its effects on society. They are numerous and very serious. Statistics of how divorce affects children are staggering. If one studies these statistics of the divorce rate in America, it shows that more than 50% of marriages end in divorce. Divorce statistics also support the fact that children who witness their parents divorce, are more likely to witness the divorce of the subsequent marriages that their parents might have. The major issue is no longer what the ill effects of divorce are, but the depth and length of persistence of these effects on children, and on their future children and grandchildren.