Bruce dykeman

            
             According to Bruce Dykeman, the author of "The Effects of Family Conflict Resolution on Children's Classroom Behavior", "More than a third of American children experience their parents" divorce before reaching 18, and under many circumstances, the effects of divorce can have immediate and long-lasting consequences. With more than one million divorces occurring every year (U.S. Bureau of the Census 1996), divorce has become a frequent occurrence in the American society" (Dykeman). The decision parents make when they decide to separate does not only affects the parents" own lives, but also, the lives of their children. " For example, many children adapt or adjust to their parents" divorce and continue to function well throughout their lives; however, they may continue to carry the pain of the divorce with them for many years. In terms of the short-term effects, there is evidence from many researchers across the country that parental divorce is associated with adjustment difficulties for their children. These effects can include depressive symptoms, anxiety, anger, acting-out difficulties (belligerence, disobedience, and even delinquent acts), and falling school grades. Children may also exhibit a drop in self-esteem and self-confidence. However, not all children show such effects, in fact, some children actually show fewer problems following parental divorce" (Long and Forehand 5). The way a child reacts or is affected by the divorce, depends on how the process is carried out. Divorce is an understood and acceptable part of life, but because children lives are being significantly changed by something that they have no control over, something must be done. Parents should not be made to stay in a relationship, which is harmful or dissatisfying to them, this situation may also have the same effects on the child. Divorces usually have a negative outcome when parents do not keep their emotions from affecting those of their children and when they do nothing to clarify the purpose of the separation.