Children of Divorced Parents

Initial reactions of Children of Divorced Parents

Pre-school (2.5 to 6 years)

• Difficulties in expressing feelings
• Fantasies about reconciliation
• Confusion
• Fear abandonment by non custodial parent
• More possibility that they blame themselves for the divorce

• Able to use extra-familial support in a better way
• More possibility that they feel divided loyalties
• Less possibility that they blame themselves for the divorce
• Anger
• Fear
• Sadness

• More possibility that they might examine their own values. In order to do so, they may disengage from the family
• Display difficulty in adjusting with sadness, shame, outrage and anger

Pre-school (2.5 to 6 years)

• Feel angry towards an unavailable non custodial parent
• Develop a close bond with custodial parent and competent step parent
• Have less memories of their parents earlier conflict or their own conflict

• Have disturbed peer relations
• Display decreased academic performance
• There is a throwback i.e. during conflict, they may say "you are not my real father / mother"
• Might challenge family rules and regulations
• Experience difficulties in adjusting to step-parenting and remarriage

• Display hurdles in adjustment like delinquency, truancy and running away
• Develop a fear for long term relations

After sufficient study, it has been concluded that children, whose parents have been divorced, take an oath not to repeat the errors of their parents. They want to completely avoid the suffering due to the process of divorce. They also wish that their children should not be forced through the same circumstances they have undergone. However, such aims of the children of divorced parents face unfavorable odds.

There is a phenomenon named "Intergenerational transmission of divorce" or "the divorce cycle." As per this, when a child grows up in a divorced family, the possibility that this child would terminate his/her marriage (when he/she grows up) is more. In order to understand a divorce cycle, one should visualize a cascade. When a marriage terminates, it begins a cycle that intimidates to impact increasing number of people with time.

It has also been found that the children who have experienced their parents divorce are more likely to do the following.

• Marry in their teenage
• Cohabitate and marry an individual who is also a child of divorced parents
• When they cross 20 years of age, the possibility to marry decreases 33 percent

Divorce Papers