Divorce in Families

Ashliegh Ramirez

We have learned in this class that divorce not only affects the two people getting divorced, it also affects any children that may be involved in the separation. We recently learned about the effects that blended families have on a child. It is not easy to adapt to new situations especially when you are younger, and incapable of understanding why you must. According to a study done by Paul Armato, “Remarriage following divorce is common, and nearly one-half of current marriages involve a second (or higher order) marriage for one or both partners”. (Armato, 2000, 1269). For a child to have one stepparent is difficult, for them to have multiple stepparents is sometimes cause for rebellion.

How the child in divorce is affected depends on several factors. According to Judson Landis, “the age of the child of the divorce and how the child viewed the home situation before they learned of the possible divorce” (Landis, 1960, 7).  One thing this study also looked at was the relationship the child had with their parents. Many times it was reported that “the child was more distant from the parent they were no living with” (Landis,1960, 9). This was reported for a few reasons, one main reason was because the parent whom the child was living with, had negative feelings towards the other parent. The child was not always directly told negative things about the one parent, however they could sense hostility, which created a barrier between the child and the other parent.

I read a study that peaked my interest. The study notices the behavioral differences between boys and girls, with divorced parents. It was shown that, “boys in contrast to girls in a single-mother homes and children from non-divorced parental households show a higher rate of behavioral disorder and problems” (Cowan, 2009 ,167). This could happen for several reasons. One could be that the child lacks a male figure in their live. Another reason could be that children from divorced parents have more built up and girls may handle it with a less attitude than boys.

While online I found this video a girl posted August 4th 2011. Many children are effected differently by divorce and she shares a little bit about herself and how she has been effected. 

References

Armato, P. (2000). The Consequences of Divorce for Adults and Children. Journal of Marriage and Family, 62(4), 1269-1287.


Cowen, P. A. (2009). Family transitions. New York: Routledge.

Landis, J. (1965). The Trauma of Children When Parents Divorce . Marriage and Family Living, 22(1), 7-13.