Divorce’s Impact on Children’s Behavior and Development
In the United States, 45 per cent of first marriages end in divorce. This causes problems for children who end up being raised by single parents. Children experience both psychological and emotional distress during a divorce. This can result in anxiety, loneliness, depression, regret, helplessness, anger, and a loss of control. Again, divorce frequently results in relocation, primarily for the children (Lamb, Sternberg & Thompson, 1997). This is relevant to my research question because these issues are prevalent in all states, including North Carolina.
Effects of Divorce on Children’s Mental Health
Children raised in a divorced family are more likely than not to divorce when they reach adulthood. Some effects are immediate and short-lived, while others affect children until adulthood. For adolescents, the trauma will follow them into adulthood (Cherlin, Chase-Lansdale & McRae, 1998). Because of mental health issues, they are unable to form loving relationships. They are afraid of marriage or commitment because of the unknown. Their childhood memories are vivid, and they see it playing out in their lives. This article is relevant to my research questions because many such children are raised in divorced, unhealthy families in North Carolina.
The impact of custody on payments and levels of support
In most cases, the court orders the father to provide financial support to the mother’s children after a divorce. However, divorced men frequently fail to comply with court orders (Pearson & Thoennes, 1988). The children are completely reliant on their mothers. Without a father figure, the children have a difficult social life. This is very common in all states in the United States, including the one under consideration, North Carolina.
The long-term consequences of unilateral divorce
Not requiring the other partner’s consent makes divorce easier and has increased the divorce rate. Adults who have experienced unilateral divorce as children are less educated, marry younger, have lower family incomes, and divorce more frequently. The state regulation that permitted unilateral divorce has been blamed and criticized for the rise in divorce rates in the United States (Gruber, 2000). Increased divorce rates imply an increase in single parents, putting children at risk of psychological and emotional problems. Children in North Carolina are among those who have been impacted.
Children’s economic consequences of unilateral divorce
Children who grew up in a state where parents divorced unilaterally had lower incomes and were less educated. As a result, they are likely to be low-income. Because of the consequences of living in a unilateral divorce state, men and women are more likely to divorce (Johnson & Mazingo, 2000). Such children are economically disadvantageous because living with a single parent is socially disadvantageous and will almost certainly lead to poverty. They do not receive adequate financial support from their parents. Finally, they cannot realize their ambitions due to a lack of quality education. This has an emotional as well as a physical impact on them. This is something that many children in divorced families in North Carolina face.
