The Effect of Marital Discord and Divorce on the Development of Behavioral Problems in Children and Adolescents Many researchers have demonstrated a link between marital conflict/divorce and child behavior problems (e.g., Jenkins & Smith, 1991; Cummings, Goeke-Morey, & Paap, 2003). The type, frequency, and intensity of marital conflict and the perceptions of children are all important factors that help shape children’s reactions to conflict between their parents. Research indicates that marital conflict is related to children’s cognitive and affective functioning. According to Grych and Fincham (1990), children’s internal processing of marital conflict involves two steps: (a) children recognize that there is some sort of disruption and respond emotionally to it, and (b) children attribute meaning, understanding, causality and responsibility for the conflict. Children then develop responses to the conflict and learn by trial and error the most effective means of coping. Grych and Fincham argued that there are distal and proximal factors that influence the cognitive and affective processing of the conflict. Distal factors are relatively stable qualities such as gender, temperament and previous experience with marital conflict. Proximal factors include expectations of the conflict and parent mood. Plomin and Daniels (1987) found that after controlling for genetic similarities, siblings vary drastically in their reactions to marital discord. Turkheimer and Waldron (2000) differentiated between the observed environment and the effective environment. The observed environment refers to the observable and measurable environment in which the children live, and is separated into aspects that are unique to each child and aspects that are shared across siblings. The effective environment is the differences between siblings that cannot be measured directly, such as behavior and personality. Factors that might explain individual differences in the development of behavior problems in the face of marital conflict are attachment orientation, birth order, early childhood experiences and different environments (Plomin and Daniel, 1987). Evidence indicates that different types of marital conflict are associated with increased behavior problems in children, especially internalizing and externalizing behaviors (Marchand, Schedler, & Wagstaff, 2004; El Sheikh &Elmore-Staton 2004; Neighbors, Forehand, & Bau, 1997). Negative conflict behaviors are maladaptive means of solving marital disputes, such as yelling, name-calling, demeaning comments and physical aggression. Many researchers have hypothesized that it is the aggressive nature of fighting that affects children, whereas a calmer, more productive means of working out disagreements may conversely have a positive effect on children. Martin and Clements (2002) found that children who witness inter-parental aggression react more strongly and in more negative ways than children who do not witness violent interactions between parents. Conversely, if parents engage in positive conflict behaviors (e.g., compromising, calm debates, exhibiting love despite differences in opinion), children are not as likely to exhibit externalizing behavior problems (Marchland et al., 2004). Moreover, externalizing behaviors are more likely if a parent shows overt hostility and anger; whereas, internalizing behaviors are more likely if the parent demonstrates avoidance and withdrawal (Marchland et al., 2004). Jenkins and Smith (1991) identified three different dimensions of disharmony that could negatively affect children’s behaviors. First, overt parental conflict may be distressing and encourage similar behavior in the children. Second, covert parental conflict (i.e., disharmony that distorts family relationships) could impair children’s adjustment. Finally, marital discord could affect the way parents interact with their children, thus encouraging each parent to behave in a different manner toward the children, which was termed parental discrepancy in child-rearing. Webster-Stratton and Hammond (1999) found that critical parenting and low emotional responsivity of parents were strongly predictive of child conduct problems and thought to stem from the marital conflict. Cummings, Goeke-Morey, and Papp (2004) also studied three aspects of marital conflict: conflict tactics (constructive versus destructive); parental emotions (positive versus negative); and conflict topics (child, marital, social, and work). Cummings et al. found that marital aggression increased aggression in children, especially when parents’ tactics and emotions were negative and the children were the object of the argument. While the link between marital conflict and behavior problems in children has been well established, less research has focused on the mutual influence between these two phenomena. There is some evidence suggesting a bidirectional relationship between children’s behavior and marital functioning. At the broadest level, Ryder (1973) showed that couples without children have higher marital satisfaction than couples with children. Relatedly, Cowan and Cowan (2000) demonstrated that the birth of a baby marks a decline in marital quality and an increase in marital distress. Other studies have reported that the parents of challenging children, whether in temperament (Leve, Scaramella, & Fagot, 2001) or physical health (Gaither, Bingen, & Hopkins, 2000), also show less marital satisfaction. In a longitudinal study over three years, O’Conner and Insabella (1999) found that marital conflict predicted an increase in adolescent behavior problems, and that adolescent’s externalizing behavior predicted a more negative rating of the marital relationship by fathers. These findings do not indicate a clear causal relationship, but do lead one to believe that the interaction between marital conflict and children’s behavior problems is significant.References Cummings, E. M., Goeke-Morey, M. C., Papp, L. M. (2004). Everyday marital conflict and child aggression. Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology, 32 (2), 191-202. El-Sheikh, M., & Elmore-Staton, L. (2004). The link between marital conflict and child adjustment: Parent-child conflict and perceived attachments as mediators, potentiators, and mitigators of risk. Development and Psychopathology, 16 (3) 631-648. Gaither, R., Bingen, K., & Hopkins, J. (2000). When the bough breaks: The relationship between chronic illness in children and couple functioning. IN K. B. Schmaling & T. G. Sher (Eds.), The psychology of couples and illness: Theory, research, & practice (337-365). Washington, D.C.: American Psychological Association. Grych, J.H., & Fincham, F.D. (1990). Marital conflict and children’s adjustment: A cognitive-contextual framework. Psychological Bulletin, 108, 267-290. Jenkins, J.M., & Smith, M.A. (1991). Marital disharmony and children’s behaviour problems: Aspects of a poor marriage that affect children. |
