Title : Divorce and the Truth about Its Effects and the Preventive Measures

I.

Introduction
It is necessary that we know divorce will generate negative impacts on children as
well as on society in a long term, so preventive measures would be a better
alternative.

II

Body
A. Divorce will bring effects on children.
1. Children from divorced families have to learn to cope with the many changes
in their family.
a. The amount of contact with one parent, often their father will be reduced
b. Children may have to move from their family home or change schools
c. They may have a decreased standart of living.
2. Boy and girl tend to react differently to their parents divorce.
a. Girls tend to become anxious and withdrawn while boys tend to become
more aggressive and disobedient
b. Girls from divorced families may become sexually active earlier than girls
from intact families.
c. Boys often adjust better when their mothers remarry, while girls have more
difficulty.
B. Divorce will bring effects on society.
1. It will increase the rate of crime
a. Robert Sampson, professor of sociology at the University of Chicago,
found that the divorce rate predicted the rate of robbery in any given area,
regardless of economic and racial composition.
b. Data from Wisconsin dramatically illustrate that the rates of incarceration
for its juvenile delinquents are 12 times higher for children of divorce than
for children living with married parents
2. It will contribute to child abuse
a. Child abuse is closely related to delinquency and violent crime, and
divorce is a relevant factor in an abused child's background.
b. Not only do higher levels of divorce accompany higher levels of child
abuse, but remarriage does not reduce the level of child abuse and may
even add to it
c. After a divorce, mothers may marry again or acquire new boyfriends, but
the presence of a stepfather or a boyfriend increases the risk of abuse
3. It will contribute to addiction

a. Children who use drugs and abuse alcohol are more likely to come from
family backgrounds characterized by parental conflict and parental
rejection.
b. Because divorce increases these factors, it increases the likelihood that
children will abuse alcohol and begin using drugs.
c. Adolescents whose parents recently divorced are found to abuse drugs and
alcohol much more often than do adolescents whose parents divorced
during their early childhood.
C. Preventive measures for family
D. Preventive measures for government

3.

Truthfulness: One other thing that would help you prevent divorce is truthfulness and

transparency. When you are honest to your spouse, he/she learns to trust you. Your spouse gets to
understand that whatever you tell him/her is correct. This helps to keep the relationship intact
and stronger.

4.

Define your roles: Each persons role should be clearly defined from the outset. This

helps to prevent constant friction or disagreements. The lesser the frictions the lesser the threat or
possibility of separation.

5.

Mutual respect: The marriage should be founded on the principle of mutual respect for

each other. Each partner should make sure the rights of the next person are not intentionally
violated. This also helps to reduce the incidence of grumbling/complaints.

6.

Communication: The line of communication must be kept open and each person should

be accessible by the other. Communication makes it easier to know when one is hurt and what to
do to pacify the offended person. It helps to prevent little things from escalating to major
problems that would eventually threaten the relationship.

7.

Likes and Dislikes: Individual likes and dislikes should be made known to each other

right from the beginning; these must be respected by one another to prevent conflicts from
breaking out from time to time.

8.

Finance: How the family finance or budget is to be handled must also be spelt out from

the beginning. Disagreements bordering on issues of finance can easily tear the family apart; so it
must be avoided by respecting the financial agreement reached from the outset.