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Annotated Bibliography
Does divorce have negative long-term effects of adolescents?
Taylor Bivans
Professor Malcolm Campbell
URWT 1103
March 9, 2015

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Clayton, Victoria. "Divorce Doesn't Have to Destroy the Kids." NBC News 11 Dec. 2007,
Children's Health sec. Msnbc.com. Web. 11 Mar. 2015.
<http://www.nbcnews.com/id/21474430/ns/health-childrens_health/t/divorcedoesnt-have-destroy-kids/#.VQIt20uLTRo>.
This news article discusses how celebrity divorces may be contributing to positive
effects of divorce. Celebrities tend to demonstrate what not to do when the
relationship goes bad; this raises awareness that more can be done. The author
examines how there are now classes for parents who are going through a divorce
to teach them how to remain good parents, even though they are separate. Out of
the 50 counties that offer these classes, two-thirds of them make it mandatory for
parents to attend. There are also private workshops throughout the country to
assist these parents. These classes are designed to make the transition more
manageable. Research also shows that parents who took the classes had greater
communication. Clayton also puts an emphasis on the importance of not putting
children in the middle of the situation. For example, not criticizing the other
parent in front of the child or not letting the child listen in on disputes. Another
important topic from the article is that you do not have to be friends, but you still
have to be parents together. This means that they do not necessarily have to like
each others company, but they have to be civil for their childrens sake. This
author is a contributor to msnbc.com. The information in this article is supported
by many different studies and work done by psychologists. This article comes
from a popular source in the childrens health section, aimed to educate others.

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Compared to the other sources, this source focuses more on how to get a positive
outcome. I feel that this source has slightly changed my initial view of the topic. I
will include this source in my project, because it gives a different outlook on my
topic.
Dean, Katherine, and Jacqueline Kirby. "Teens and Divorce: What Hurts and What
Helps?" Family and Consumer Sciences. Web. 11 Mar. 2015.
<http://ohioline.osu.edu/flm02/FS11.html>.
This scholarly article describes the hardships of divorce and also
recommendations to get through it. The negative effects are described in great
length within this journal. The authors discuss how children growing up with
divorced parents experience problems with adjustment. These children are said to
have difficulties in school, be more sexually active, and are more likely to abuse
drugs. Within this article, they examine how adolescents feel neglected by their
parents and they feel that they have less time to grow up and mature. This article
also considers economics and gender as factors. It is said that most children who
seem to be adjusting well early on will experience the same issues during
adolescence. Research shows that parental monitoring, joint decision-making and
limited conflict between the parent and child can aid in adjustment. One of the
authors of this journal is an assistant professor and the other is a graduate student,
both at Ohio State University. This academic journal is intended to aid families
going through divorce. The information within this journal comes from creditable
sources. I will be included this source in my project, because it not only lists

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many effects that divorce can have on adolescents but it offers recommendations
to help adapt the parent and child.
"Divorce Plagues Kids' Social, Academic Lives for Years." Fox News. LiveScience, 2
June 2011. Web. 11 Mar. 2015.
<http://www.foxnews.com/health/2011/06/02/divorce-plagues-kids-socialacademic-lives-for-years/>.
This news article examines the effects of each stage of divorce: pre-divorce,
during, and post-divorce. The article is based off of a long-term study done by
researcher Hyun Sik Kim. Kims study followed kids from when they entered
kindergarten until eighth grade. He measured their math, reading and social skills.
Kim discovered that the children began to have difficulties in these areas as soon
as their parents entered the pre-divorce stage. An earlier study done found that
children whos parents get divorced within the first five years of their life tend to
be worse of than if they were to divorce later on down the road. Based off of that
study, Kim decided that his results could not be applied to every age group. To
conclude his research, he said that the post-divorce phase is the hardest. This is
because children go through custody battles, a parent moving, and traveling back
and forth between parents. This popular article is creditable, because it examines a
study done by a doctoral candidate. The article is featured within the mental
health section of the website, so I believe that it is meant to inform readers on
specific effects of divorce. I do not think that I will include this article in my
project, because it focuses on younger children and my topic is directed towards
adolescents.

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Murray, B. "Family Income Predicts Childrens Post Divorce Well Being." American
Psychological Association. Web. 11 Mar. 2015.
<http://www.apa.org/monitor/jun00/income.aspx>.
This reliable website examines how income and education play a role in the well
being of the child. The author states that children of mothers with high income and
education levels are affected a lot less than children with mothers who are financially
unstable. The article discusses a study done on children from birth to age three. This
study was conducted to see if the same negative effects that adolescents endured were
noticeable for infants and toddlers. The research showed that it wasnt necessarily the
split of the parents that led to the effects, but the mothers income and emotional wellbeing. The research concluded that if the mother is financially and emotionally stable that
the child will not suffer negative effects from the divorce. The information on this
website is creditable, because it summarizes published work done by a researcher. I feel
that this purpose of this article is to inform others of the research study that was done. I
will most likely include this source in my project, because it gives another outlook on the
topic.