Some 58 percent showed emotional disorders severe enough to require treatment if their parents divorced when they were between ages 11 and 16. The researchers analyzed data from the National Child Development Study following the more than 17,000 babies born throughout Great Britain during one particular week and followed throughout their lives. Adolescents appeared to be most at risk for suffering the long term negative effects of divorce with 39 percent having emotional problems serious enough to warrant treatment by the time they were 23. In addition, compared to their peers in intact families, these children were at 20 percent greater risk for emotional disorders of depression, anxiety, phobias, and obsessions. Greater severity in each of these areas was linked to the high risk for severe emotional problems at age 23.
Divorce is a major life stressor for adolescents no matter what the circumstances.
A Developmental Perspective.