Family Transitions
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DIVORCE OR A PARENT’S DEATH CAN CHANGE A FAMILY FOREVER. NOW A UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA STUDY FINDS IT MAY PROVE MORE DIFFICULT FOR YOUNG BOYS THAN FOR GIRLS.
RESEARCHERS FOLLOWED TEENAGERS AS THEY WENT THROUGH VARIOUS CHANGES OVER A TWO-YEAR PERIOD. THE RESULTS SUGGEST MALES INVOLVED IN A FAMILY TRANSITION, SUCH AS DIVORCE, WILL ACT OUT MORE THAN FEMALES.
Marv Krohn/UF Researcher: “Females are closer traditionally to their mothers. The mother is the person who typically stays with the child when there is a family transition and hence the impact on the female will be less than the impact on the male.”
EXPERTS SAY SCHOOLS CAN HELP BY NOTIFYING PARENTS IF THEY SEE CHANGES IN BEHAVIOR AS KIDS COPE WITH FAMILY ISSUES.
Marv Krohn/UF Researcher: “I think the schools have to take a more proactive approach in terms of actually counseling kids through the transition that’s taking place in the family.”
RESEARCHERS SAY THAT COUNSELING COULD HELP KIDS COPE WITH CHANGE BEFORE DELINQUENT BEHAVIOR CAN EVER BEGIN.