Effect of Parental Divorce on Children

Some of the most comprehensive research on the effects of divorce on children has been conducted by Wallerstein (1983) and Wallerstein and Kelly (1980). Specifically, these authors conducted a longitudinal study of 60 divorcing families living in California; at the time of the study, the children ranged in age from three to eighteen years. The authors state that their research indicates that the divorce itself, no matter how conflict-ridden the marriage, always comes as a shock to the children.

Also, no matter how well parents explain events, most children will feel afraid of the future, guilty about their own (usually imaginary) role in the divorce, hurt at the rejection they experience when a parent moves out and angry at both parents for the divorce itself. There can be depression, hostility, disruptive and irritable behavior, feelings of loneliness, sadness a

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tart of the study) from a largely White, middle-class population of divorced families in the Western US. Preliminary findings of the study were said to suggest that some psychological effects of divorce are long lasting. About 40 subjects who were adolescents at the start of the study and ranged in age from 19 to 29 at the 10-year follow-up regarded their parents' divorce as a continuing major influence in their lives. A significant number of these subjects appeared burdened by vivid memories of the marital rupture, feelings of sadness, continuing resentment at parents, and a sense of deprivation. However, despite unpleasant memories, most of those interviewed were generally strongly committed to the ideals of a lasting marriage and to a conservative morality. In another study of the long-term effects of divorce on children, Glenn and Kramer (1987) estimated the effect of parental divorce on the divorce-proneness of offspring for White males, White females, Black males, and Black females through an analysis of pooled data from 11 US national surveys conducted between the years 19731985. The estimated effect for White females was substantial and significant, but any effects in the other race-sex categories were moderate.
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