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  • Essay / The Impact of Interparental Relationships on Children

    Over the years, concerns about the impact of interparental relationships on children have been discussed. Numerous studies have been conducted and demonstrate the harmful effects of interparental relationships on children. Evidence has progressed from previous research and it has been highlighted that tensions between parents can potentially have a negative effect on children's mental health and development (Towle, 1931). Multiple studies have demonstrated that interparental conflict has greater effects on children's adjustment than divorce itself (Tschann, Flores, Pasch, & Martin, 1999; Morrison & Coiro, 1999; Forehand, Neighbors, Devine, & Armistead , 1994). In fact, using a longitudinal study, Amato et al. found that children in families with high interparental conflict have better outcomes if their parents are divorced than if they stay together (Amato, Loomis, & Booth, 1995). Their results indicate that if couples with serious marital conflict do not divorce, their unresolved conflict may have a negative impact on the well-being of their children (Amato, Loomis, & Booth, 1995). It is clear, then, that conflict between parents can have a far more devastating effect on children than their parents' marital status itself. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why violent video games should not be banned”?Get an original essayAccording to Davies and Cummings, the interparental relationship directly affects children's adjustment through the level of emotional stress and academic performance (Cummings and Davies, 2014). Adamson and Thomson also concluded that children who witness interparental conflict suffer increasing levels of stress that negatively affect their academic achievement (Adamson and Thomson, 2008). According to Hurlock, children who witnessed interparental conflict experienced increased stress levels, which made it difficult for them to concentrate on their schoolwork (Hurlock, 2011). In addition to increased stress levels, previous research has also highlighted that interparental conflict can have an indirect impact on children through ripple effects. The ripple effect is defined by previous research as the transfer of emotion from an interparental relationship to a parent-child relationship that can cause a change in the emotional, behavioral and developmental factors of the child. child control (Harold, Aitken and Shelton, 2007). Harold et al. conducted a study in 2007, highlighting that interparental relationships play a crucial role in a child's academic performance (Harold, Aitken, & Shelton, 2007). Their results suggest that children belonging to families with high interparental conflict are at greater risk of lower academic achievement than children belonging to a positive family environment (Harold, Aitken, & Shelton, 2007). In 2010, Ghazarian and Buehler examined the link between interparental conflict and children's academic achievement. They found that students with higher levels of hostile, intense, and unresolved interparental conflict had lower grades than their peers without interparental conflict (Ghazarian & Buehler, 2010). Existing literature on interparental relationships has found that most research has been conducted on children of divorced parents and its impact on children's mental, health, social, and emotional problems rather than their academic difficulties. Additionally, as previously noted, conflict between parents can have a far more devastating effect on children than their parents' divorce. Thus, the present study extends researchprevious studies examining the impact of interparental conflict on children's academic performance when they witness such conflict. The objective of the present study is to examine the impact of child exposure to interparental conflict on child academic performance. We hypothesized that the interparental relationship is correlated with the child's academic performance; Children without exposure to interparental relationships and those with conflict perform better academically than their peers who are exposed to interparental conflict. The independent variable in my study is exposure to interparental conflict and the dependent variable is the child's academic performance. The independent variable in this study is defined operationally by assessing the child's exposure to interparental conflict using a self-report measure, the O'Leary-Porter Scale (OPS). The dependent variable is defined operationally by assessing the child's academic performance using their Education Quality and Accountability Office (EQAO) test scores. The sample consisted of 79 school-aged students in grades 3, 6 and 9 attending Rickson Ridge Public School and Centennial Collegiate Vocational Institute in Guelph. Participants were aged eight to 12 years old. The sample included 35 third graders, 23 sixth graders, and 21 ninth graders. Primary and secondary schools were contacted to participate in this research study aimed at helping parents understand the link between family structure and children's academic achievement. We recruited participants by sending an invitation letter and consent form to participate in this study via email. Parents interested in participating were invited to submit their approval via email. Only two-parent families were considered, and potential participants were excluded from the study if they were divorced or separated. Compensation of $10 was paid to each participating family as an incentive and both participating schools received booklets containing key research findings to distribute to all students. This study used the results of the OPS and EQAO tests to measure the variables. OPS is an indicator of parents' self-report of marital conflict and measures children's exposure to interparental conflict (Harold, Aitken, & Shelton, 2007). This is a 20-item questionnaire that includes questions about how often various forms of marital hostility are displayed in front of the child with responses ranging from never to very often on a nine-point scale (Porter and O 'Leary, 1980). Examples of various forms of martial hostility examined in this questionnaire include quarreling, sarcasm, physical violence and aggression. The reliability and validity of this measure have been established by numerous studies showing high internal consistency, good test-retest reliability, and concurrent validity (Porter & O'Leary, 1980; (Harold, Aitken, & Shelton, 2007; Gao , Silva, Cummings & Davies, 2019; Xuan et al., 2018). weekly, several times a month, once a month?, once every few months, less than once a month, once a year, once every few years, never The next study material? used is the EQAO tests. This is a standardized test that assesses students' cumulative knowledge and skills in reading, writing and mathematics at stages.