As a group, children from divorced families have more problems than children from non-divorced families, according to Robert Hughes, Jr., Ph.D. with the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. While the majority of children of divorced parents do not have serious problems, a higher percentage of children in this group exhibit serious challenges compared to their peers with married parents. Counselors, therapists or ministers might help parents considering a divorce to salvage their marriage.
Economic Stress
Children living with a single parent may have more difficulties than those in intact families due to less income coming into the household. The custodial parents are generally mothers that generate less income than two-parent households do. Dr. Hughes of the University of Illinois says the challenges to children might come from the life disruptions that result from less money, rather than the lack of money itself. In other words, a change in the economic situation could lead to a child changing schools or moving out of her current neighborhood. This can affect friends and other supportive relationships, leading to further problems for the child.
Schoolwork Suffers
A divorce increases the likelihood of trouble in affected schoolchildren, according to Civitas, The Institute for the Study of Civil Society. In Rebecca O' Neill's "Experiments in Living: The Fatherless Family," written in 2002, she states test scores measuring reading, math and critical thinking skills are more likely to be poor in children from divorced families. Problems with teachers tend to increase, as do difficulties with academic work. Children of divorcees are also more likely to be truant from school and stop attending completely at age 16 than children with two married parents.
Emotional Problems
The Howard University's Hilltop Online states that children in single parent homes are more likely to suffer from mental and emotional problems than children raised in two-parent homes. Hailey Parker, a Howard University Hospital doctor and psychiatrist, says one of the contributing factors might be that single parents spend less time with their children than married parents. This is due to the stresses of work and rearing a child single-handed. Children may, therefore, feel neglected and turn to illegal activity, including becoming drug addicts, in the absence of both parents. Divorced families present a greater risk for children with depression or other serious psychiatric disorders to develop, according to the Hilltop.
