Research has unveiled that children of divorced parents face severe long-term repercussions, such as reduced income, elevated mortality risk, and a greater probability of teenage pregnancy.
Economists Andrew C. Johnston, Maggie R. Jones, and Nolan G. Pope conducted a thorough study, following children born in the U.S. from 1988 to 1993. They scrutinized various life aspects, including income, education, and health indicators.
The researchers used a sibling comparison approach to assess how divorce affects children differently based on their age during their parents’ separation.
Analyzing over five million tax records, the researchers concluded that divorce contributes to negative outcomes for children beyond pre-existing family problems or financial hardship.
The study indicates that divorce leads to a significant decrease in family income. Prior to separation, family earnings ranged from $90,000 to $100,000 annually, but plummeted to about $42,000 post-divorce, a loss persisting for at least ten years.
This financial hardship resulted in longer working hours for parents, with fathers increasing their hours by 16% and mothers by 8%, leading to reduced time spent with their children.
Divorce often causes residential instability, with about 35% of children from divorced families moving within the first year. Over time, the distance between non-custodial parents, typically fathers, and their children grew significantly, surpassing 200 miles by ten years after the divorce.
Children also moved to lower-income neighborhoods, with average neighborhood incomes dropping by 7% post-divorce, reflecting a decline in living standards.
The study reveals that younger children at the time of divorce experienced more severe negative effects compared to their older siblings, earning 9% to 13% less in their mid-to-late twenties.
This income reduction equates to “losing a year of education” or living in a significantly poorer neighborhood.
Additional measures of child well-being also showed negative impacts, with the teen birth rate for girls increasing from 7 to 13 births per 1,000 annually, and child mortality rates rising from 10 to 15 deaths per 100,000 children.
These trends persisted even after accounting for existing family conditions, pointing to divorce as a direct cause.
Three main pathways through which divorce adversely affects children were identified: decreased household income, relocation to neighborhoods with lower living standards, and increased distance from non-resident parents. These factors explained 25% to 60% of the negative outcomes.
According to Grant Bailey, a research associate at the Institute for Family Studies, these are not merely side effects but crucial elements in understanding the full impact of divorce (source).
The study refutes the notion that these results stem from temporary family crises or isolated events like job loss. Divorce often follows deep-rooted marital issues, and no economic or health shocks preceding the split were observed.
Bailey suggests that these findings challenge the prevalent narrative in modern American media that highlights the empowerment of individuals who divorce, often overlooking the effects on their children.
While divorce may offer benefits to individual parents, the study highlights the often-overlooked costs for their children, emphasizing that parental separation can trigger significant changes that affect their future.
“This new study provides further evidence that lasting marriages matter, especially for child well-being,” Bailey concluded.
This article was originally written by www.christiantoday.com
