Effects of Divorce on Children

Research that explores the effects of divorce on children.

Divorce Science Research Updates 6-22-2015

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Children refusing to visit a separated or divorced parent is one of the most difficult issues affecting postdivorce adjustment.  Although this is a small group of children, there are many unanswered questions.  Below is some of the most recent work in this area.

Longer list of studies published regarding parental alienation between.  A more complete list of research report about divorce, remarriage and stepfamilies published in 2015 or between 2010-2015.

Parental Alientation

Polak, S., & Saini, M. (2015). Children Resisting Contact With a Parent Postseparation: Assessing This Phenomenon Using an Ecological Systems Framework. Journal of Divorce & Remarriage, 56(3), 220-247. doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/10502556.2015.1012698

Search Terms by Young People about their Parents’ Divorce

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My colleagues and I have been exploring the resources that are available to teens on the web.  We have conducted searches using various search terms that we think might be used by teens to find material.

We also have inserted the same terms into Google Trends to see the patterns.  Most of the terms we have used are not frequent enough to register in Google Trends, but a few are… Below is the figure that illustrates the pattern of 5 terms over the period from.

  • Blue — “parents divorce”  Most common search term
  • Purple– “divorce parents” Next most common search term
  • Green– “divorce of parents” 3rd most common search term, but declining 
  • Orange– “parents split up” This search term begins to show up in 2009. 
  • Yellow– “parents separating” This search terms begins to show up in 2009.  

Google Trend--Popular Searches

Relationship Scientists Divorce– Some Advice

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Rarely to the scientists who study relationships provide a glimpse into their own personally challenging relationships in such an intimate and powerful way… Charlotte and Patrick Markey begin their story about divorce as follows…

“We have been a romantic couple for almost 20 years, married for 13 years, produced two wonderful children, moved across the country for academic jobs, conducted numerous scientific studies examining romantic couples, and…will soon be divorced. How could two people who study why romantic couples fail or succeed be such utter failures themselves? The answer is easy: we are human. Like everyone else we have faults. We argue. We disagree. We neglect. We make bad choices. In the past, we have always been able to survive these shortcomings.”  for further reading…

Science of Relationships has many interesting articles about relationships.

Teen Divorce Stories

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Here are some more video stories for teens.

 

 

Teens and Divorce– various resources

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We have begun collecting information and programs to support teens dealing with their parents divorce.  Here are some examples:

Online Programs

Family Change:  Teen Guide to Separation and Divorce– Designed by the California Courts

Children of Divorce– Coping with Divorce (this program has a fee)

Support Groups

I Am a Child of Divorce

Also, we have begun to collect some of the recent scientific literature on teens’ perspective on their parents’  divorce.  

Hartman, L.R., Magalhaes, L., and Mandic, A. “What does parental divorce or marital separation mean for adolescents? A scoping review of north American literature” (2011). Journal of Divorce & Remarriage, 52, 490-518. doi:  http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/10502556.2011.609432

Deborah Gatins , C. Ryan Kinlaw & Linda L. Dunlap (2013) Do the Kids Think
They’re Okay? Adolescents’ Views on the Impact of Marriage and Divorce, Journal of Divorce & Remarriage, 54:4, 313-328, DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/10502556.2013.780496

Good summaries of what scientists know about divorce adjustment for adults and children

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Two of the leading researchers on the effects of divorce on adults and children have recently given TED talks about their work.

Dr. David Sbarra, U of Arizona, Surviving Divorce, 9 minutes

 

 

Dr. Tamara Afifi, currently at U of Iowa, How Divorce Effects Children,  19 minutes