Introduction
In his article, Donahey (2018) talks about divorce as a family issue and its impact on children. The author informs that when parents separate in marriage, the issue is not only an adult’s problem but also affects children significantly. Most marriage dissolution outcomes can harm the success of children in future relationships, hence the need to mitigate the problem through parental approaches. According to the author, one intervention that can be applied to address the effects of divorce on children is conscientious parenting, whereby adults continue to work together despite their differences and altered family dynamics. Such intervention can positively impact the future romantic relationship of children, especially with daughters. However, barriers that can impact co-parenting strategy are the number of arguments or conflicts between parents, making it hard to agree on what is best for the family. The purpose of this paper is to provide a summary of a research article about the topic of divorce and its impact on children.
Why the Article was Selected
First, the article by Donahey (2018) is relevant and credible because it is written and published by a recognized academic institution. Moreover, the information conveyed by this resource is reliable as it is covered in-depth, addressing divorce, a significant family issue that was discussed in class (Bélanger & Ward, 2018). The structure of the article and content is clear, as the author provides information supported by literature work. Donahey (2018) addresses a problem and provides a potential solution that could be applied to promote the wellness of families undergoing a divorce.
The major thing learned from the article was the effects of marriage dissolution on children. Divorce is fairly common and accepted in societies such as Canada. In the past years, the issue was uncommon and affected a small portion of married persons. With time, marriage breakups started to increase, doubling in numbers. On the contrary, factors such as the age at which individuals get married or level of education contribute to a shift in the divorce rate.
Nevertheless, divorce does not occur equally among the population in states, while some segments are more likely to separate than others again due to social and economic factors. However, the effects resulting from marriage disintegration are enormous for couples and children. Donahey (2018) points out effects such as a negative message about the experience of marriage and mental health challenges. The author teaches that, although the effects of divorce could be detrimental to children, separated parents are unaware of the benefits of interventions to support their young ones.
Thus, the article provides an insight that parent knowledge is crucial to facilitating the welfare of children’s physical and mental health. Perhaps if married people recognize the potential damage from divorce, they would work on protecting children from harm. Educational measures such as family therapies or programs can help reduce the likelihood of suffering by recognizing ways to protect loved ones amidst a social conflict (Nielsen, 2017). The article derives an overview of the benefits reaped from counseling programs and the need for parent education in communities.
What was Learned from the Research and Impacts?
Donahey (2018), in his study, taught an effective method of addressing divorce effects on children. According to the author, vast studies explore techniques for helping children deal with the family splint and navigate marriage dissolution (Donahey, 2018). Yet, there is a disconnection between knowledge and application. Disseminating findings of effective ways to manage adverse outcomes of divorce on children can motivate couples to take necessary actions to fight the trend. By reducing the impacts of the marriage breakup, there are high chances of children’s success in the future and counter the issue of divorce. According to Donahey (2018), therapy is a strategy to mitigate the effects of family issues and restructuring, but other less formal approaches such as co-parenting are neglected.
Joint parenting involved sharing familial roles, such as raising children after an event of divorce. The method works through a reciprocal interaction of each parent towards promoting children’s wellbeing. After marriage dissolution, traditional family structures change, and how adults interact is modified (Murphy et al., 2017). To integrate the co-parenting style, the methods of working together as parents and interaction with children must be redefined in the familial construct. Although there are challenges such as communication after divorce, continuing to parent together is crucial since the failure to do subjects children to long-term disadvantages.
Research from the article teaches that co-parenting can be cooperative and involved, moderate and engaged, or infrequent but conflictual. Although there are different ways to co-parent, when adults are involved in raising children, the adverse effects of marriage breakup on children are neutralized. After divorce, a father-daughter relationship is a remarkable experience as it affirms a bond where communication and sharing are facilitated. Daughters feel connected and supported by fathers such that they are likely to perceive the positive relationship with men and seek to be close to them in the future. According to Donahey (2018), the relationship between a girl and her father informs her anticipations of men in the future. Thus, following divorce, the father’s influence on the daughter is substantial, necessitating their role and need to co-parent.
Information from the article has an impact on guiding people regarding the value of relationship bonds and the benefits to children’s future life. Donahey (2018) teaches how and why a divorced parent’s interaction is critical to their children. For example, to daughters, fathers play a crucial role in shaping daughters’ beliefs, values, and perceptions about men in the future. A healthy and close relationship between a father and daughter after divorce instills principles about men’s role in supporting families. Thus, using this knowledge and insights, the couple in families can be enlightened on the importance of joint parenting for healthy relationships with children and assurance of wellness in the future (Hashemi & Homayuni, 2017). Coparenting is an effective strategy to protect children from the bad image of family and construct their own through mutual collaboration and understanding.
How the Article Impacts Social Issue/ Family Theories
The article would have an impact on social issues such as family separation urging parents to consider the effects of marriage dissolution on family structure and children. Although the author does not tell insight parents deliberately not to divorce, he cautions the divorce practice due to harm it incurs on children and their future lives. The problem intervention discussed intends to rectify children’s effects by shaping their perception of family and marriage to a positive perspective. Donahey (2018) inform how helpful the relationship between a father and daughter would be following divorce. Thus, the article provides a solution to the social issue by suggesting a health-based intervention.
To theories about family, the article impacts practices such as conflicts resolution approach and family therapy or counseling by emphasizing the value of co-parenting as a strategy towards a social problem. Donahey (2018) inform that parents may not realize how their arguments affect conflict approach and behaviors in children by teaching through examples. As such, this article infers that co-parenting is not only an intervention to address the effects of divorce on children but also a strategy to instill quality values regarding conflict management (Bélanger & Ward, 2018). Family models are challenged by information in this article to consider co-parenting as a beneficial technique for addressing problems affecting families. Precisely, therapeutic interventions such as family or group counseling are impacted to emphasize education on the benefits of raising children through collaboration.
Personal Definition of Family
Family means having people or someone who loves unconditionally despite the shortcomings, supporting one another even when it is difficult to do so. The greatest role a person can take regarding the concept of family is being the best to inspire loved ones. Family is a basic system in society that consists of two parents doing their best to raise children with care, and establishing a strong family is a significant approach for any rational society.
After studying the article by Donahey (2018) a new insight is derived about the description of a family. The author’s work impacts personal knowledge about family by asserting it is a support system to raise children collaboratively regardless of whether parents are together or separated (Donahey, 2018). In other words, the role of a mother or father should not change even if there is a divorce to protect and maintain children’s well-being. Donahey’s (2018) article informs the benefits of sticking together through co-parenting for a long-term impact on children’s lives in their future relationships. The greatest lesson to learn from this resource about family is the value of care.
Conclusion
In conclusion, divorce is a common family issue which impacts can be devastating to people’s lives. While the most evident effects of marriage dissolution are immediate, including financial struggle or mental-related issues such as loneliness and depression, there are long-term consequences to children’s future relationships. Children may develop negative attitudes toward families and neglect the value of marriage relationships based on conflicts witnessed by their parents. The article by Donahey provides an overview of the problem and possible interventions.
References
Bélanger, M., & Ward, M. (2018). The family dynamic: Canadian perspectives. Nelson College Indigenous.
Donahey, K. (2018). Effects of divorce on children: The importance of intervention. The Brigham Young University Undergraduate Journal of Psychology, 13(1), 21-33.
Hashemi, L., & Homayuni, H. (2017). Emotional divorce: Child’s well-being. Journal of Divorce & Remarriage, 58(8), 631-644. Web.
Murphy, S. E., Gallegos, M. I., Jacobvitz, D. B., & Hazen, N. L. (2017). Coparenting dynamics: Mothers’ and fathers’ differential support and involvement. Personal Relationships, 24(4), 917-932. Web.
Nielsen, L. (2017). Re-examining the research on parental conflict, coparenting, and custody arrangements. Psychology, Public Policy, and Law, 23(2), 211. Web.