Divorce is a heavy concept that has many implications for those involved. The situation becomes even more consequential when children are considered. As divorce has become more commonplace in society, millions of children are affected by the separation of the nuclear family. How far-reaching are these effects? And is there a time when divorce is beneficial to the lives of the children? This paper will examine some of the major research and several different perspectives regarding the outcomes of divorce for the children involved, and whether it can actually be in the best interest of the kids.
Wallerstein’s intended audience for this article are researchers of the same field as herself or those interested in the roots of those struggling with social and psychological issues in their adult lives. Wallerstein’s choice in intended audience ties in well with the authors purpose to raise awareness about the long term effects cause by divorce and also allows for more research to be conducted by those interested in the evidence Wallerstein is
In the 1970’s, divorce was relatively uncommon and difficult to happen. There needed to be adultery, abandonment, cruelty, intoxication or some other reason that made it necessary to end the marriage (“Why”). In today’s society, divorce happens every ten to thirteen seconds. Men and women fall in love, get married, and start a family. They make a vow to stay together forever and love each other unconditionally. However, not all marriages make it that far. Divorce occurs for multiple reasons such as financial problems, abuse, addictions, infidelity (cheating), and lack of communication. These factors, along with many others, not only affect the parents, but the children are affected as well.
On her part, Cheryl Wetzstein in her article “Lowering Divorce Rates Urged As National Goal” argues that legislation should be put in place to checkmate the rate of divorce in the United States especially for a family with children. According to Wetzstein, the problem of divorce and its effect on children is a national goal which demands critical evaluation on the part of the government. Wetzstein claims that the effect of divorce touches every aspect of life. According to a study shared by Wetzstein, children from separated homes exhibit emotional, physical and mental problems; are easily exposed to crime and drugs; perform poorly academically, and are likely to commit suicide. Wetzstein states that seeing the unfortunate impact divorce has on these children, the government, as a matter of urgency, should come up with laws that would reduce family separation; this would not only preserve the future of the children but also saves government lots of money (2000).
Chapter fourteen of the Marriage and family textbook by David Knox, covers divorce and remarriage in today’s society. It discusses how the attitudes towards divorce have changed dramatically from how it was viewed by our parents and grandparents. Not only have society’s views changed on divorce but also on the functioning roles of the family and its structure. The author also goes into how the child custody issues have changed and what things affect children who have divorcing parents. He then goes into remarriage for divorced couples and the effect it can have on the children.
The rising divorce rates in America are no secret, with 50% of children in America going through the divorce of their parents. There is a huge weight on these children’s shoulders, the weight of dragging their bags from one home to the other and seeing their parents barely
With a major upsurge of divorces beginning in the forties, experts argue that divorce was and still remains a social problem. From a religious perspective, historically theologians and moralists have disapproved of divorce and decreed divorce as a dysfunctional and disruptive of the stability of society , the family and the welfare of children and the well being of adults. In addition, sociologists imply that divorce is undesirable and promote familial disorganization. The increase of divorce has threatened the normativity of intact families, thus divorce defies the desirable family structure. Psychologists, including children psychologists and social workers emphasized several deleterious consequences of divorce in terms of the
The social problem impacts children in Toronto ages 6-18. Divorce, as the center of this paper is defined as a separation and a practice that lot of people goes through in life. It is also known as dissolution or termination of marriage, and or the annihilation of a marriage or marital union. (Insert). This continues to escalate over the years and therefore become a somber social problem; though it is a slow process but eventually results in families to fall apart. Nevertheless, there are many facets in which a marriage could fall-apart and end up in divorce, and the effects are enormous and enduringly deteriorate the tie or relationship between child and parents. According to statistic Canada divorce rate for couples, ages 50 to 54 is 38%,
According to Oxford Dictionaries (n.d.), Divorce is ‘”the legal dissolution of a marriage by a court or other competent body; legally dissolve one's marriage with someone.” Throughout the twentieth century, the family dynamics have drastically changed. During the course of the twentieth century the family unit has been impacted by the countless amounts of marriages ending in divorce (Hiller & Recoules, 2013, p 77). For one to be able to fully understand how the topic of divorce relates to marriages, families, and blended families one must examine the cost of divorce has on the family unit. The core of this paper will examine the cost of divorce and the effects it has on the children within the family unit. The paper is organized as follows.
“Divorce isn’t such a tragedy. A tragedy’s staying in an unhappy marriage, teaching your children the wrong things about love. Nobody ever died of divorce,” states Jennifer Weiner, a New York Times Bestselling author, in her novel, Fly Away Home. Although Weiner has a point in voicing that a dispirited and forlorn relationship can corrupt the innocent mentality of children, it is vital that she also considers the darker, more sinister side of divorce. To put the term ‘divorce’ simply, it “is what husband and wife do together when they no longer wish to do anything together“ (Yantiss). If for any reason one may feel as if their current marriage isn’t right, isn’t working out, for them, one way to solve that problem would be divorce: the
Marriage used to be a long-life institution once established between two people. Even in troublesome times, people struggled to remain married for the sake of their children and to prevent the criticism of society. Today, however, this norm has been relaxed with the 700 % increase in divorce that America has seen since the early 1900’s. This accepted deviance once created chaotic opposition. However, today it is more common for a marriage to fail. Surprise and admiration are gained if a marriage lasts more than five years. In essence, it could be argued that the relaxation of this norm has created more irresponsibility and selfishness in society leaving children in the midst of a break-up.
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
Kelly (2003) is critical of some early literature by Wallerstein and Blakeslee (1989), arguing that these were biased and influenced public perception, with a ‘persistent emphasis on pathology’ (Kelly 2003, p 240). Other studies on divorce are more robust and ‘challenged the belief that divorce alone was the cause of children’s poor well being’ Kelly (2003 p.240) citing Cherlin et al (1991). This may account for the greater acceptance of the variety of modern families. Because divorce is so common, children no longer wish to be typecast as ‘children of divorce’ (Flowerdew & Neale, 2003, p. 158). It is these stigmas that could have negative connotations for the child as well as the parent; these stigmas in themselves may prevent children from adjusting if they feel that they are being judged.
Each and every day a child somewhere in the world is experiencing major changes within their family. One of those major changes is divorce or separation of parents. Divorce is “the action or an instance of legally dissolving a marriage”(Webster, 2011 p1). Today’s reality shows that couples only have one in two odds of remaining together. “ The U.S. Census bureau – involved in research about counseling children of divorce- estimating that approximately 50% of all American children born in 1982 lived in a single-parent homes sometime during their first 18 years. Mostly are due to divorce”(Children of Divorce, 2008 p.1). The rapid increase in divorce rates is a factor that has contributed to the large decline of the typical family. “Over 1
Divorce is a plague that is destroying numerous families across the United States of America. Sadly, when husbands and wives divorce, the children are often caught directly in the middle. Throughout the years divorce has been becoming more and more common. In the 1920's it was a rare find to know a person whom had been divorced, today it is a rarity not to know of one who has been, or will be divorced. Divorce has numerous effects on the structures of families, and many devastating effects on the children that must experience it, although sometimes necessary, divorce radically changes the lives of adolescents and adults alike.