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Divorce Effects On Children Research Paper

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The Effect of Divorce on Children
In the world today, divorce has become more and more relevant, as many people of all ages are more open to the idea of ending their marriages and starting over. In fact, according to the article “Children Divorce Statistics”, it quotes from Furstenberg and others that “50% of all North-American children will witness the divorce of their parents. Almost half of them will also see the breakup of a parent's second marriage” (Bloem 1). With the divorce rate going up, the effects of the separation must be acknowledged. The stress and change of a divorce of two parents on children, especially older, causes many development issues, such as depression, anger management problems and anti-social disorder, which may …show more content…

In fact, according to another article by Reinier Bloem, it states that “The age of the children plays a role in how they react to the divorce. Effects of divorce on children under 9 years - the so called preschoolers - are that they tend to blame themselves for the divorce; [however] adolescents (children between 9 and 13 years) react in the opposite direction. They tend to behave more independent. They feel betrayed by their divorced parents. Mistrust enters the relationship.” (Bloem 2). All children will more than likely act out in some way as a reaction to this situation. Although, children aged three to five usually do this in a different way than one might imagine. According to Allison Clarke-Stewart and Cornelia Brentano, co-authors of “Divorce”, children of these ages dealing with a divorce commonly “regress in their toilet habits”, isolate themselves and become fussy. They then continue on and state that “They suck their thumbs, cry for their cuddlies, cling to their mothers. They withdraw in fear and anxiety, whereas once they were outgoing and sociable. They wet their beds and refuse to eat their vegetables. They are profoundly upset, anxious and irritable” (Clarke-Stewart 112). With the confusion and stress that comes with a divorce, children through these early years of three to five become anxious already about losing a parents and worrying about losing the other one that they react in

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