Literature Review: Correlation Between Parental Divorce and Success in College

Abstract

Children and adolescents in today’s society are commonly experiencing parental divorce. Because of this, it is important to understand how parental divorce affects these children. The impact of this will affect their development, their mental health, and their educational attainment. The need to earn a higher education degree is great and college students are under immense pressure to succeed. In this literature review, research articles were found using keywords like, “parental divorce,” “education,” “college success,” and “varying reactions.” This literature review sought to find out if parental divorce is correlated to success in college. Subtopics like how to define college success, factors that negatively impact college students, and how each child varies in their reaction to parental divorce, were all explored. The research of this literature review indicated that parental divorce has a negative impact on success in college because experiencing parental divorce has a negative effect on a child’s education, and when educational attainment and ambition are lowered, the chance of succeeding in college declines.