Affects of Divorce in Children in the Different Stages of Development - Admission/Application Essay Example

Affects of Divorce in Children in the Different Stages of Development Introduction In United s, divorce has been considered one of the major issues in the marital realms. Under the rule of law, the dissolving tie of matrimony amongst a married couple and termination of a marital union is known as divorce. The parents dealing with the dilemmas and stress of parenting after divorce creates a long-lasting impact on the development of children. Every child has to go through developmental behavioral changes. Moreover, these developmental changes may exhibit change in behavior at the time of divorce. The effects of marital disruption of children can be ranging from psychological disturbances which can effectively diminish the social relationships. According to Owusu Bempah, “the separation of children from mother is like getting detached from a hand or foot”. At the time of divorce, it is really unusual for a child to experience reversion at early stages of development. The prime purpose of the paper is to discuss about the effect of divorce towards dissimilar stages of development of children. The paper also presents the impact of divorce on development process and recommendation to deal with the issue. Discussion Regardless of the development level or age of children, the occurrence of divorce can be regarded as a stressful experience for children. According to Census Brief 2000, the percentage of Americans that are married at the time of census is 54.4%. At the time of census, 18.5% of individuals are divorces, widowed or separated. According to United States Bureau of Labor 2008, the divorce of United States is 5.2%. The rate of divorce has diminished from the year 2000. It can be noticed from the statistical view that rate of divorce might be diminishing but it can create huge adverse effect on the youth and development of children. At the start of divorce, the agony experienced by children composed of a loss of the non-custodial parent, reaction towards the loss of the complete family, sense of vulnerability, feelings of powerlessness and felling of intense anger. Sometimes it becomes hard for parents to hide their disruption in parental relationships. Moreover, children tend to know about the marriage problems despite the application of best efforts of parents. The feeling of distress and pain on divorce is considered to have impact on parents and children. It is true that children go through the same response such as intense sorrow, boredom, depression, irritability, feelings of helplessness, lower self-esteem and felling of disbelief. According to the research, the initial blow of divorce can make kids to recover rapidly. E. Mavis Hetherington states that these effects of divorce can be in the short term and can vanish at the end of second year (Arkowitz & Lilienfeld, 2013) The effect of divorce on child from birth to two years The tension of mother is increased by the development of fetus. This emergence of tension can felt at the onset of developing fetus. Babies would not understand the tension of mother but can eventually react to the issue with nervous movements. Babies are dependent and helpless and require care and affection of their parent to nurture and develop in to fruitful human beings. The cause of divorce can be felt through the distressed situation of mother (Berkeley, 2009). Moreover, when mother is feeling depressed about divorce and then it can eventually affect the relationship with the child. This depression of mother is felt by child as a lack of interest and enthusiasm from their parents. The attachment of parents is crucial at this stage of development of child (Wallerstein, 1991). It is true to the fact that infants do not have the knowledge and thoughtful at this mere age to understand the word divorce and effect of it, but they are increasing fearful and aware of the absence of the parents. Consequently, this can lead to increase of nightmares, separation and distress. Possible reactions There are three possible reactions, such as Loss of appetite of a child at an early age, drastic change in eating habits and troubled stomach. Action and recommendations The consistency and quality of care is vital at this stage of development. The needs of the child can be met by loving, caring and formation of trust bond by parents. The formation of close relationship at this age is vital for the development of a child. Normal routine should be maintained and provide child with favorite secure items or toys. At the time of hypertension of divorce, it is recommend that parents should spend much time as possible with their child to reduce the frequent tension (Azcourts, 2009). This is mainly due to the fact that it can create severe negative impact on the development process of a child. The effect of divorce on child from 2-5 years Pre-school is the time of beginning to model behaviors of children. This is the time when children known what is right-wrong and developed a conscience. For adolescent issues, these years are regarded as a working drawing. The events caused at an earlier age can develop behavior of children. The parenting of children is determined by the arguments of parents at the time of divorce. Some of the parenting issues can be ignored by parents. Sometimes if relationship between parents is not satisfying that it can accentuate the question of raising the children. After hearing the arguments, children can think that they are the prime reason behind the cause of argument and can eventually lead to breakup of the marriage. Between 2-5 years, children consider that world rotates around them. The development of sex-role identities can be created by communication with the opposite sex parent and parental support (Cherlin, 1991). The support of peers provides an additional support towards the development of children. At this age, children believe that they are in control of the environment. Therefore, it can pose more problems when parents are in conversation for a divorce. This development stage of a child is known as preschool. Action and recommendations The positive feelings of a child can be developed by affection and consistency in routines. From personal point of view, the express of concern, love, positive disciple and formation of family strengths are the vital resources to nullify the development problems. Parents must ensure safety, encourage their children and read books for them to remove the growth issues. The effect of divorce on child from 6-11 years The amount of peer interaction is increased and introduced at this age. The onset of divorce for elementary school children can become a huge obstacle for their development process. Children will realize if parents talks with them about the issues. Moreover, children could understand that they were not abandoned by their parents (Hess, 1979). Children may interact with numerous numbers of people and can return home with several types of controversial questions regarding divorce. This issue is regarded as vital for the development of child from birth to mature age. The emotional development of child is regarded by the openness about the situation of divorce. This development stage of child is known as late latency. Actions and recommendations Providing positive feedback and reinforcing rules that can help in the development of child on limits, personal goals and self-rewards. From personal point of view, best tools for development issues are big dose of affection, consistency, logical consequences and mentor role. Moreover, other remedies are reassured of safety, encourage on other activities and spend quality time. The effect of divorce on child from 11-18 years This is the stage of early and late adolescence. Early adolescence is the stage when children are abstract thinkers and they develop their own identity. At this stage, the focus of the children is not on parents but on peers (Minuchin, 1985). Children are aware of the situation of their parents and do not accept divorce as a solution. Late adolescence gains total independence and are ready to be launched in to the external environment. Family is lesser important for late adolescence. School and peers are most important part of their lives. The thinking skills of later adolescent are finely tuned and establish their separate identity. Actions and recommendations Positive feedback and proper advice are vital in this stage of development process. Adolescent has the power of thinking and knowledge to decide their own future. These children have the capability to judge their parents on decision-making and focuses on moral issues. From personal point of view, remedies of this issue can be having household rules, keeping an eye on the development of children on school, share experiences and increase communication. Conclusion Divorce can have a life-altering and significant impact on the consequent development of children. The word divorce can be just a legal act, but for children it is the physical splitting of the family, the deterioration of relationships, dismantle of feelings and the loss of security. The termination of marital union can become a stressful experience for living arrangements and deterioration of development of children from childhood to adulthood. Moreover, the need for child specialists, child mental health professionals is significant for children of divorced parents. The growth of children of being an emotionally steady individual can be possibly by openness in the relationship. The adjustment of children is dependent on several factors such as developmental stage, socioeconomic status, individual personality and parental distress. When need of honor, admiration and care is fulfilled, then it can help to promote successful adjustment of the increasing issue of divorce. References Arkowitz, H., & Lilienfeld, O. S. (2013). Is divorce bad for children? Retrieved from: . Azcourts. (2009). Planning for parenting guide. Retrieved from: . Berkeley. (2009). Should we stay together for kids? Retrieved from: . Cherlin, A. (1991). “Longitudinal studies of effects of divorce on children in Great Britain and the United States”. Journal of social science, 2(1), 14. Hess, R. (1979). “Post‐Divorce Family Relationships as Mediating Factors in the Consequences of Divorce for Children”. Journal of social i9ssues, 8(1), 18. Minuchin, P. (1985). “Families and individual development: Provocations from the field of family therapy”. Journal of child development, 12(2), 9. Wallerstein, J. (1991). “The long-term effects of divorce on children: A review”. American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, 65(4), 4. Read More