Friday, June 11, 2004
Parental separation affects one in four Australian children
Nearly a quarter of children in Australia experience the separation of their parents by the age of 15 - up from 7 per cent 50 years ago - according to a new report noted in Family Edge. Previous research based on divorce statistics put the proportion at 15 per cent, but new data on the living arrangements of more than 12,000 children and 7700 households suggests an estimate of 23.5 per cent, says the report, The Changing Living Arrangements of Children, 1946-2001.
Written by Professor David de Vaus of La Trobe University and Dr Matthew Gray of the Australian Institute of Family Studies, the report also shows the number of children born to married couples has dropped from 98 per cent to 72 per cent from 1946 to 2001, while the number of children born to cohabiting, unmarried parents has jumped from zero to 16 per cent.
The proportion of children born to single mothers has also increased - from 2.6 per cent between 1946 and 1955 to 6.5 per cent in 2001. And the number of children who will live with their lone mother due to parental separation by the age of 15 has doubled from 9 per cent to 18 per cent for the same period. These children spend an average of six years living solely with their mothers.
Nearly a quarter of children in Australia experience the separation of their parents by the age of 15 - up from 7 per cent 50 years ago - according to a new report noted in Family Edge. Previous research based on divorce statistics put the proportion at 15 per cent, but new data on the living arrangements of more than 12,000 children and 7700 households suggests an estimate of 23.5 per cent, says the report, The Changing Living Arrangements of Children, 1946-2001.
Written by Professor David de Vaus of La Trobe University and Dr Matthew Gray of the Australian Institute of Family Studies, the report also shows the number of children born to married couples has dropped from 98 per cent to 72 per cent from 1946 to 2001, while the number of children born to cohabiting, unmarried parents has jumped from zero to 16 per cent.
The proportion of children born to single mothers has also increased - from 2.6 per cent between 1946 and 1955 to 6.5 per cent in 2001. And the number of children who will live with their lone mother due to parental separation by the age of 15 has doubled from 9 per cent to 18 per cent for the same period. These children spend an average of six years living solely with their mothers.
