Parents' Rows Are Worse For Children than Divorce, Study Finds

Children of divorced parents are damaged by the fighting that goes on during the marriage rather than the split itself, new research suggests.

The study, carried out at the University of York, looked at 'non-cognitive' skills such as interaction with peers, and seems to contradict conventional wisdom that divorce is bad for children, its authors said.

Instead, they argue that it is the dysfunctional relationship prior to divorce that is to blame.

The research is based on data from 19,000 children born in the UK in 2000, and found that 50 per cent of the non-cognitive skills gap could be down to interparental conflict.

The report said:

"Conventional wisdom and a large literature from multiple disciplines tell us that parental divorce is bad for children.

"But the negative relationship between divorce and children's outcomes may be explained by pre-divorce circumstances and, for example, parents who decide to divorce may also be lower educated or poorer, or they may have a more conflictual relationship.

"Indeed, interparental conflicts may be even more harmful to child development than parental divorce itself."

If your marriage has come to an end, call us on 020 8297 4414 to find out about our specialist divorce services.

Mandy Peters

Divorce Solicitors