Divorce can have a tremendous effect on the lives of children and the parties that are getting the divorce. More than half of all marriages in America end in divorce. It is believed that the people that are affected the most by divorce are children, over a million of them experience divorce in their families each year. During the decade between 1990 and 2000 about 15 million children, under the age of 8, became products of divorced families. It is estimated that by 2010,over 50% of children will come from a single family home. The purpose of this discussion is to explore the effects of divorce on children and their parents. Divorces can devastate the most important relationship in a child's life, and experts believe that divorce can have a negative effect on the relationships that children have later in life. When children have experienced the divorce of their parents they are more likely to divorce than those that come from traditional families and those that lose a parent because of death. In addition, children who are from divorced families usually become sexually active earlier in life, be more promiscuous, more likely to live with a mate without being married and usually marry at a younger age.

It is believed that the most vulnerable time for children of divorce is during...

This vulnerability is due to the fact that during the adolescent years children begin to become more self conscience, they also seek to mature relationships with peers and family members. In addition during adolescence children seek independence. Late in adolescence and early adulthood are also transitional times when the individual may be completing high school, beginning college, leaving home for the first time, or starting to work full-time. These changes can sometimes trigger depression and other problems in children of divorce as they are separated from familiar peer groups and familial support. (Cooney, 1988). In situations such as these, parental divorce may act as an added stressor and greatly impact adjustment (Dunlop & Burns, 1995).
Studies have generally concluded that divorce can have a detrimental impact on both short-range and long-term adjustment for children. For instance, children from divorced families, when compared to those from traditional families, were found to have lower self-concept, lower life satisfaction and overall well-being. Children of divorce also exhibited an increased risk of experiencing difficulties in relationships, coupled with poorer levels of intimacy with parents and peers and they also have…