Podcast: When Parents Split, Teens Lives are Changed Forever

Image+by+Raquel+Wu

Image by Raquel Wu

Divorce has a tremendous impact on the lives of American children.

According to Scientific American, 1.5 million children each year join the group of minors that are affected by divorce.

Studies by the American Sociological Review, The Center for Research on Child Well-being and The Harvard University Press, among others, have shown that it has many negative effects on kids such as a higher rate of dropping out of high school, a higher risk of drug and alcohol abuse,an increased likelihood of committing crimes as a juvenile and perhaps most alarmingly, children of divorce have an almost five times greater likelihood of living in poverty as an adult.

The Beachcomber interviewed four people with divorced parents in order to further explore divorce and the effect it has on teenagers. Listen to our podcast below.

Divorce by the numbers (all statistics from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, unless noted otherwise)

  • People without a college education are less likely to get married, but at the same time, divorce 10% more frequently and marry younger when compared to their  college-educated counterparts
  • Women tend to marry at younger ages than men
  • Women are at a significant disadvantage after a divorce. They are 16% more likely than men to fall into poverty after divorce, are less likely to rise out of poverty, and remarrying reduces the risk of poverty in women by two-thirds. (Familyfacts.org)

Children of Divorce on……..

Family

“It’s taught me lessons in life, and it’s also taken away from me. It’s definitely taken away part of my childhood.” -Freshman Ben Connor

“It’s definitely given me a different outlook on family….It feels like it’s two distinct places, one with my mom and all of her family, and one with my dad and all of his family.” – Sophomore Sam Connor

Their initial reaction when they first found out

“Right when they got divorced, I thought my life would be ruined and terrible, but my relationships with each of my parents stayed the same or got better.” – Sophomore Josh Lazar

“I was really sad for maybe like the first couple of days, but eventually I got used to it, and it became easier and easier as the years went on.” – Sophomore David Somogyi

How it’s affected their approach towards relationships

It’s definitely given me a different outlook on family….It feels like it’s two distinct places, one with my mom and all of her family, and one with my dad and all of his family.

— Sophomore Sam Connor

“Is this the person for me? Am I going to be with them forever? I gotta think about that.” – Somogyi

“I think that it will help me make sure that I marry the perfect person, because I know that my parents didn’t really date that long before they got married.” – Lazar

 Negative Effects of Divorce (according to the American Sociological Review)

A higher high school dropout rate
A higher risk for drug and alcohol Abuse
An increased likelihood of committing crimes as a juvenile
An almost 5 times greater likelihood of living in poverty as an adult

How Families Can Make it Easier for Kids (according to Dr. Jacqueline Kirby and Katherine Dean, published in an article on the Ohio State University Extension website)

  • “Use effective parenting by providing encouragement and emotional support, establishing and explaining standards for conduct, and administering consistent discipline.”
  • “Reduce inter-parental conflict…..Speak positively about your child’s other parent in front of the child and do not place the child in the middle.”
  • “Maintain a feeling of closeness with your teen, use effective parental monitoring, allow them to make decisions with you regarding their activities.”
  • “Continue to be a parent to your child rather than turning into a friend.”
  • “Allow your adolescent to remain a teenager.”