The phenomenon is attributed to their parents' obsession with personal gratification and belief that divorce was the instant panacea for an imperfect marriage. While an unhappy home life creates a plethora of problems for kids, ongoing studies show divorce can create even greater emotional trauma. U.S. data suggest children reared by one birth parent are twice as likely to drop out of school or become teenage parents, regardless of a parent's education credentials. Parents must be responsible grown-ups looking out for the people they've brought into this world. She points to effective mediation resources available to help salvage faltering relationships.
Some marriages are worth fighting for.
But like other child welfare professionals, Gordon qualifies her response with warnings about the toxic effects of violent or abusive relationships on kids. It hurts children to witness the very people they love hurting each another. Bob Glossop, executive program director of the Vanier Institute of the Family, says a generation of young Canadians shows slight signs of being more cognizant of a couple's responsibility to their offspring. However, many of these younger Canadians have not gotten to the point in their lives where they're contemplating divorce. Susan Wright, a child and family therapist at Peel Children's Centre, believes more emphasis should be placed on pre-marital counselling.