Divorce hurts kids’ math and social skills.

Kids of divorced parents often are more likely to suffer anxiety, stress and low self-esteem and fall behind their classmates in math and social skills, according to a new study.

Researcher Hyun Sik Kim, of the University of Wisconsin-Madison , said the study showed that the detrimental effects on the children do not start until after the parents begin divorce proceedings.

The findings, published in the American Sociological Review , are based on data that tracked the development of 3,585 students from kindergarten through fifth grade to examine the impact before, during and after the divorce.

Kim compared the progress of children whose parents were going through a divorce with youngsters from stable families. He found that developmental problems continued after the divorce.

He attributed the developmental setbacks of the children to several factors, including the stress of living with bickering parents.

Photo credit:  wtol11

Via Times of India