Images of Child Victimization in High-Conflict Divorce of Parents

Abstract

Separation and divorce of parents is a phenomenon that can potentially threaten the stable development of children and, as such, requires scientific exploration. An analysis of the current literature shows that a breakup becomes particularly painful and hurtful when adults become entangled in an unresolved, long-term conflict that generates a range of further hostile actions. Children experience suffering from emotional neglect with psychological consequences similar to those experienced by victims of physical and/or sexual abuse. The dynamics of events can trigger a harmful process of victimization of children, hardly visible to adults, but threatening with extensive, long-term effects. The text analyzes the current Polish and world literature in the field of research on the separation of high conflict and its potential implications. They are illustrated with examples of stories of parents’ separations and the internalizing /externalizing influence of family events in the children’s reactions. The subject matter may be important not only for pedagogical and psychological practice, but also for legal circles dealing with family matters.