Effects of Divorce on Children Differentiating effects on different age groups By Belen Acosta

Divorce Effects Behavioral problems Emotional stability Health Academic struggles

Early years after parents’ divorce Fear of abandonment Grief over loss Anxiety Sadness and anger Worried about parents Irrational hope of reconciliation Uncertainty about romantic relationships

MOST INTENSE REACTION TO PARENTS’ SEPARATION Infants and Preschool (0-5) How can an infant be affected from a divorce? ENVIRONMENT Infants are helpless, they thrive off their environment They grow strong reactions off the emotions around them Ex; infants’ behavior may be inconsistent, less affectionate and less positive Preschool years Confusion Do not understand what divorce or separation mean Fear Frightened when parent leaves Afraid of being left alone and abandoned Feelings of loss and rejection MOST INTENSE REACTION TO PARENTS’ SEPARATION

Example If their father has left, who is to say their mother won’t stop loving them and leave them too? They are afraid of who they will be with if both parents leave them.

School Age (6-11) Ages 6-8 More anxious and depressed Grieving openly Anger and sadness Blame on parent for divorce and other for lashing out School Age (6-11) Anxiety Often feel very anxious Powerless Having no control over the situation you want to fix Upset Although this age group understands, they can be just as shocked and frightened

Child’s Perspective

Young Adults Fears: Worried about parents being together for graduations or weddings Question whether they are truly loved Believe they may repeat their parents’ problems.

Adolescence (12-18) Ages 12-14 Overreact with anguish and and anxiety Ashamed, embarrassed, and more self-conscious Ages 15-18 More mature and may not see separation to be as devastating Trouble Get lower grades, give up academically Drug and alcohol use may increase Adolescence (12-18) Greater awareness and understanding of parents’ problems Still experience same sadness, fear, and sorrow Less likely to blame themselves for the separation

Example “Children from divorced families were at least twice as likely as those from intact families to have academic difficulties; they got more D’s and F’s, and had trouble keeping up with their classes…” (Clarke- Stewart)

How large are divorce effects? Nearly half the children born in the U.S. experience their parents divorcing before they reach 18. Partly due to stress and disruption, studies find children from a divorced home experience more mental and physical problems. Adult children of divorce are twice as likely to experience relationship dissolution and divorce. (Emery, Robert)

Work Cited Clarke-Stewart, Alison and Cornelia Brentano. Divorce : Causes and Consequences. Yale University Press, 2006. Current Perspectives in Psychology. EBSCOhost, chaffey.idm.oclc.org/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=nlebk&AN=188000&site=ehost-live Masci, David. "Children and Divorce." CQ Researcher 19 Jan. 2001: 25-40. http://library.cqpress.com.chaffey.idm.oclc.org/cqresearcher/document.php?id=cqresrre2001011902&type=hitlist Monica Epperson. “Dear Mom & Dad”. The Child of Divorce, Inc. 20 April. 2014. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lbTFZ8cvHo4 Amato, Paul R., and Christopher J. Anthony. "Estimating the effects of parental divorce and death with fixed effects models." Journal of Marriage and Family 76.2 (2014): 370-386. Emery, Robert E. Cultural Sociology of Divorce : An Encyclopedia. SAGE Publications, Inc, 2013. EBSCOhost, chaffey.idm.oclc.org/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=nlebk&AN=592549&site=ehost-live.

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