Study: University-Age Kids not Harmed by Divorce

While it’s well-known that stress and trauma of divorce can have a negative impact on children, a recent study suggests that if those children are attending university, the impact is minimal – even beneficial.

As reported by Healthday.com, University of Warwick (Coventry, England) researchers gauged the productivity and happiness levels of 270 students of recently-divorced parents. The levels were then compared to other students whose parents were still married. The results were similar, with the added insight that some male students of recently-divorced parents actually improved their productivity levels.

The reason behind these surprising observations are, according to research Dr. Eugene Proto, about emotional and psychological resiliency. “University students are much more resilient than has been presumed,” Dr. Proto stated in a news release. “Although parents do worry about divorcing around the years that their children go to university, our tests suggest those children turn out to be just as happy as other students.”

As for future implications of the study, fellow researcher Daniel Sgroi noted that “[g]iven the large number of university students throughout the industrialized world who have recently divorced parents, our results can only be reassuring news for concerned parents and students alike.”