Communication And Relational Closeness Between A Parent And A Child

Divorce is not only difficult for parents, but even more difficult for the children. It can hit hard and fast but can also be built up from long term damage and stress on the marriage. Children can view their parent’s divorce in multiple ways. They can visually see it, or they can hear it. Children may also not view the divorce at all. Divorce can be sudden, confusing, and hidden. It can be a quick and relieving process, or it could be slow and painful. The relationship could be fought for night after night with little progress being made. The marriage could be fought verbally or even physically. Hurtful words are thrown to bring an end to the relationship and caring words are thrown to keep the marriage alive.

Amato, Paul R, and Alan Booth. “A Prospective Study of Divorce and Parent-Child Relationships.” Journal of Marriage and Family 58.2 (1996): 356–365. Web. 5 Nov. 2016.

The key research question in this study is what are the long term effects of parental divorce on a child’s relationship between their parents and their siblings? They took into consideration variables such as age of divorce, gender, and living arrangements so they can see what influence they may have on the present study results and compare it with previous studies. They gave 3 different surveys to 102 students with married parents and 107 students with divorced parents to be able to observe the differences in relationships between the two types of families. Some of the key findings of this study are that females actually have better adult relationships with their siblings and that divorce caused the children to have better relationships with their mother, and worse relationships with their father. They noted that the age when their parents got divorced was not a variable that affected whether or not they had a good relationship with their siblings. For the relationship between their mothers, it was better unless there was a variable of pre-divorce or post-divorce conflict between them. For their fathers, it showed that daughters had worse relationships with their fathers compared to sons. Living arrangements showed effects for both of the parents depending on which parent they lived with. When it comes to remarriage, it had a positive affect on mother-child relationship when the father got remarried and no affect when the mother was remarried.

In today’s society there are many different type of families, such as traditional families, broken families, blended families, and single families. Blended families are becoming more and more common. According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services(2002), one third of marriages after ten years end in divorce. About sixty five percent of remarriages involve children, therefor one in three Americans are now a stepparent, a step child, a step sibling, or some other member of a blended family.(Lucas, Nicholson, Erbas, 2013) Research has shown that children that have experienced divorce have more personal issues as well as problems with their own romantic relationships because they are unknowingly repeating the communication behaviors set by their parents than children with a stable

Many parents that I know of have divorce in their marriage. Some had good communication and still was able to hold the family together. In my essay, I will be explaining the differences and similarities of two families going through a divorce. I will show the effects that divorce have on children and the parents as a

Divorce is a critical period for many families. It is a process that raises the amount of tension present between the two partners and their children. It is a complex, and unreceptive topic for numerous individuals and their families. Divorce does not only mean separation between the two partners, it often includes separation of a family. Families are a system and for the system to function optimally all parts require to be present and have an ideal arrangement (Taylor, 2002). Divorce disrupts a family’s equilibrium and causes many stressful events. The process is a stressful period for many parents, due to increase parenting responsibility or loss of custody of the children and economic decline. Adults going through a divorce

In research for her book, Valerie DeLoach, gathered data from numerous separated parents about the most common conflicts in co-parenting. In an online article, DeLoach states, “It seems the number one topic that is brought up is communication. Not just communication between the parents, but communication with the kids. It has been proven that kids need their parents to remain involved. Good communication regarding the kids should be of the highest priority, but even more important is encouraging the relationship between your kids and the other parent.” In an interview with Robert Hughes, an Associate Professor in the Department of Human Development and Family Science at Ohio State University, he explains the importance of mothers and fathers in a child’s life. Parents provide emotional support and practical assistance, as well as serve as role models for their children. Hughes describes the many factors that influence how well a child copes with divorce such as age and gender. He also points to two important factors: the amount of conflict between parents and the support available from friends and family (Patten). Parents can help adolescents make adjustments and deal with divorce by talking about feelings and emotions that arise during a stressful time. Children that aren’t able to express their feelings often carry issues into relationships with friends, peers, and even other siblings. Research proves that that kids “may seek to hide the fact of divorce from other children and this can result in very constrained relationships with peers and limit their interaction with others for fear that the secret with be discovered” (Kelly and Berg). It is important for parents to communicate the truth, in an age appropriate manner, and reassure children that they had no part in the divorce. For a child, a feeling of security comes with knowing that they can openly talk

Separation or divorce is a process, not just a single event (Clark 6). Divorce is, in more times than not, the sum of an on-going conflict. This atmosphere is toxic for the children who, whether they want to be or not, are right in the middle of the separation as if it were a burden of their own. This leaves the children in a mental battle that they have no power to control. This group of adolescents start to question how and why their parents can’t make it work and then, rightfully so, are left with the question of whether or not they are the problem. These children

Children have to face many things during their parents divorce like conflict between their parents, the transition of being in two homes, and dealing with the changes that happen during their parent’s divorce. Many children will react differently to their new situation and many factors can affect how they transition through the divorce. Parent’s divorce can leave kids feeling alone and like they cannot trust or rely on their parents anymore. Kids will react at different times with different emotions some will act out and others might avoid people and being social. Parents need to understand that their children are also grieving as

In the last two decades divorce has increased substantially leaving couples single and families broken. Divorce is the reality for many families as there is an increase in divorce rates, cohabitation rates, and the number of children raised in step and single marital families. Divorce cannot be overlooked as it negatively affects and impacts youngsters for the rest of their lives. Although it is the decision between two parents’s children are hurt the most in the process. The concept of divorce is extremely difficult for children to understand as there are many unanswered questions and uncertainties. “Will my mom or dad remarry and who will I live with?” are concerns children express while going through divorce. Many

By definition, divorce is to break the marriage contract between oneself and one’s spouse by a judicial declaration dissolving a marriage in whole or in part. This is a result of tension which is a mental or emotional strain of a relationship between individuals. When going through the process of divorce, most of children’s opinions are left out of the process. This causes a great deal of tension for the children. Many children become very stressed during this process because they do not want their parents to separate (“The Truth About Children and Divorce”). The tension of divorce negatively affects children’s everyday life because the parents are not taking the child’s opinions into consideration leaving the children feeling left out and rejected.

From being happy on top of the world, to exposing someone, divorce can really torment a family. When divorce is explained to a child, parents go about it in a round about way. Parents try to sugar coat the actual meaning of divorce, speaking as if the divorce was not happening. If parents takes time to tell the child about the divorce there should be honesty and straight forwardness. For instance; a mother is trying to explain divorce to a six year old. She begins with the “ honey Mommy and Daddy love you very much” then “ daddy and mommy are very busy with our jobs and we will not be around each other for a while, we both still love you, honey”. That is not really telling the child that their not going to be together anymore. It is more so giving the child false hope.

According to Dartmouth Undergraduate General Of Science,”Today over 45 percent of marriages in the United States end in divorce and “about 40 percent of children will experience their parents’ divorce”. In the current time we live, divorce has become more of a common solution to the problems of a marriage. Many years ago, parents would stay together for the sake of their children. Now that divorce has become such a common practice, parents do not put a second thought into it. Parents tend to believe that their children will just accept it and have no struggles or face any hard times because of their decisions. During divorces, parents do not completely consider their children's feelings or the effects the divorce will have on them.  Parents often feel that they are doing what is best for themselves and their children by divorcing. They believe a divorce is the best solution for the struggles they face with their spouse. During their lifetime,children who are affected by broken marriages are more likely to face mental and emotional health problems, financial instabilities, and social issues.

Unfortunately divorce is a very common and ordinary occurrence in today’s world. Many families and children witness the horrible feeling of this awful, some would say, nightmare. It is no longer seen as an awful deed like it used to be by the representing members of society. But this begs the question, “Do the children affected by divorce view it in the same manner, or do they see it as the vile thing it is?” While it can have some positive outcomes, such as a cease in violence in a child’s life, these are certainly overshadowed by its numerous ill effects. No child wants to see their parents constantly fighting and not loving each other as they should. Divorce has a number of critical influences on a child’s life, reaching beyond just their life at home, and affecting both their performance in school and their own ability to create relationships.

Divorce is the termination of the legal duties and responsibilities of marriage, thereby dissolving matrimonial bonds between a couple by a court or other competent body. More, and more couples are getting divorced as a result of high conflict, loss of intimacy and connection, and financial problems. Oftentimes, these couples have children who must now deal with the aftermath of their parent’s divorce, and unwillingly face immediate consequences. Divorce between their parents forces a child to readjust their life style, it puts a strain on the relationship between the child and their parents, and it effects a child psychologically.