No, the Children of Divorce Are Not ‘Fine’
By John Stonestreet and Shane Morris - Posted at Breakpoint:
Published June 5, 2025
The largest ever study of its kind reveals the truth about kids and divorce.Of course, the decision to stay married must be made by both parties in the marriage. So, in many situations, a mom or dad finds herself or himself divorced against their will. Still, the normalization of divorce was driven by the oft-repeated myth that “the kids will be fine,” that kids need “happy” parents more than they need married ones.
Statistically, however, children of divorce are not fine, and we now have even more evidence to prove it. A new study published at the National Bureau of Economic Research is the largest ever of its kind, tracking over a million children of divorce over fifty years. The results are staggering.
According to researchers Andrew Johnson, Maggie Jones, and Nolan Pope, the average household income immediately after divorce is less than half that of married parents, and never fully recovers. Even as adults, those subjected to an early childhood divorce make less money, about 13% less by their late twenties. According to the authors, this loss is comparable to losing a year of education or growing up in a lower-income neighborhood.
Children of divorce also have a 60% higher risk of teen pregnancy, and a “sharp and persistent” increased risk of childhood mortality. They spend much more time separated from at least one parent, with an average distance of 100 miles between mom and dad. Such children have a 40% higher risk of serving jail time, are half as likely to attend college, and have a 45% higher risk of early death as adults compared with kids whose parents stayed married.
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