Family Picture: A Memoir of Children with Broken Family

A Qualitative Research Presented to the Faculty of

DAVAO CITY NATIONAL HIGH SCHOOL
Humanities and Social Sciences
Benitez

In Partial Fulfilment of the Requirement for the Subject

Inquiries, Investigation and Immersion
(Qualitative Research)

Caminero, Imielord P.
Blasé, Ma. JuenezaMajal G.
Florida, Diane Fatima M.
Cebrano, Kevin Clint
Gumampo, Aiman
Jewis, Rosemarie
Rurac, Trexy May
Aranez, Roice

November 2019
Statement of the problem
The family is the basic unit of the society. It is wherebuilding romantic

relationships with others. Having parental infidelity threatens the foundation of the

marriage as well as the whole family relationship. It affects the relationship of the

child to couples not only emotionally but physically, mentally and socially as well

which may also influence the establishment of the former’s relationships. It is a

problem which has consequences that permanently damage the parent-child

relationship as well as other future relationships. Considering the parent-child

relationship as the most important, parental infidelity may be a precursor to the

individual’s relationships toward his or her own family, and building romantic

relationships with others. This familial and social issue can have a big impact on

individuals themselves. They may perceive their own family as a failure. As a result,

they may have a hard time in decision-making and understanding things surrounding

their environment, especially within their familial environment.

A study by Margot Galang (2015) on Implication of Broken Family to Filipino

Children, the common reasons why Filipino couples separate include financial

problems, lack of communication, infidelity, and domestic violence. Clinical and

therapists note that children caught in the middle of parent’s animosity during

separation have attention and concentration problems, academic problems, anger

issues, sleep disorders, and other psychological, behavioral and spiritual problems.

Filipino people were known of placing great value on the family which plays a

vital role in the Filipino culture. The state itself recognized family as the foundation of
the nation as stated 1987 Philippine Constitution. Article II, Section 12 of the

Constitution states: "The State acknowledges the sanctity of family life and as a

fundamental autonomous social institution shall protect and reinforce the family.

Globalization has given migrant workers, especially women, international

employment opportunities, as more and more Filipinos are sacrificing themselves to

work abroad to support their families back home (Asis, 2006 & Coloma, 2013).

On the other hand thefamily‟s vital function was modified when a husband

and wife are detached for long time. The wife chose to work abroad leaving her

children behind and jeopardized the function of the father. Herewith, Filipino

students have the same adverse effects to the children around the world when their

families were not intact and they ended up under the care of a foster families

whether with relatives or with close family friends (Barberos&Gozalo, 2016; Reyes,

2009).

Moreover, Burton (2012) reports that a recent study by University of Notre

Dame and the University of Rochester revealed that parents’ marital problems can

leave a lasting impact on their young children. Researchers found that this ultimately

leads to problems in their teenage years, including depression and anxiety, as young

children experienced tension between their parents. "The results further highlight the

possibility that early experiences of children will have persistent negative effects

when there is conflict between their parents, at least when their emotional insecurity

increases as a result of the conflict," said Mark Cummings, Notre Dame Endowed

Chair in Psychology, who led the research.

 Various studies about foster children, but none of them dealt with an

investigation particularly in qualitative case study approach just like the study which

the researchers have undertaken. This therefore addresses the research void and

social relevance in view of the contribution it has made to the study's beneficiaries.

The research hopes to help children in foster homes cope with the stress they have

endured and to expand the mind of school administrators in their academic

difficulties to address the problems of these students.

Furthermore, this study aims to discover the lived experiences of children

growing up in a broken family, and to know how do the children cope with this

situation. It is relevant in our society because most of the families have been into this

situation and also to avoid deliquency. This research study refers how can the

children from broken familyeffect their education, social and mental health and how

they are able to build resilience in facing their family problems. To what limit do

broken homes caused by separation, divorce or death of parents affect the children.

Preliminary Literature Review

Parental Infidelity. Ngozi, Peter & Stella (2003), showed that parental

infidelity may be considered as one of the most controversial social phenomena,

seen as one among the major causes of marital instability which often leads to

divorce, desertion, single-parenthood and generally failed marriages. It may be a

critical part for the self-development of individuals.In the 2011 Philippine statistics on

marriage, there were about 476, 408 marriages, from the 482, 480 marriages from
the previous year . Since then, the numbers of married couples are decreasing. This

is a clear indication that Filipino married couples need to strengthen their marital

relationship.

The family is the company's basic unit. It is here that individuals first develop

their personalities and build their relationships among members of the family,

especially with their parents. Hermes (2002), stated that children initially interact with

their parents from which the latter provides examples of desired behaviors that are

ought to be learned by the former. McLeod (2001), said that the parents are

considered as the influential models of the child. They teach the child values on how

to face the reality of life and to develop their own behaviors.

Parental infidelity, along with other issues related to marriage Tyson, Diana F,

is one of the key social concerns. (2008), argued that it may be one of the major

reasons for divorce in parental relationships. The existence of parental infidelity

threatens the foundation of marriage and the entire family relationship. In relation to

the Filipino culture, Carandang and Guda (2001), said that the Philippines is a

country for friendliness and closeness among individuals, which can be important in

maintaining relationships. Filipinos have close family relations as one of the most

treasured qualities of the Filipino community. This value enables Filipinos to meet

people quickly, make friends and establish personal, enduring, intimate and romantic

relationships. Since Catholicism predominates in the Philippines, couples in the

Philippines regard marriage as important and sacred and eventually build their own

families. Marital success and satisfaction are greatly affected by several factors such
as the love, intimacy, commitment, and passion between the couple. Nevertheless,

as time goes by, the number of Filipino broken families is growing.

Marital separation. Marital separation brings long term consequences for the

child and the family. It marks the life of the child and the family unit (Maldonado,

2009). Numerous studies have documented the impact on children of marital

separation. VanderValket, you know. Al. (as noted in Landucci, 2008) found that

children of divorced parents may have a lower sense of psychological well-being

compared to children of intact families. Many researchers also confirm that divorced

parent children that experience emotional issues such as loneliness and depression

(as stated in VanderValk et al., 2005).

Studies comparing the school records of children from one-parent and two-

parent families have found that children raised in one parent homes have an

increased risk of poor academic achievement. Moreover, Whitemarsh (2008) found

that in academic performance some children from broken homes may show

decreased functioning and display oppositional behavior, or signs of mixed anxiety

and depression. Whitemarsh also reported a decline in the ability to concentrate in

class, decreasing attendance, and willingness to participate in class, suggesting that

a child has difficulty adjusting to a shift in family dynamics.

On the other hand, children’s resilience in one-parent household is believed

to be significant indication of success in other areas of their lives including

academics (Hargreaves, 1991 as cited in Landucci, 2008). Hargreaves noted that

children with emotional heartbeat and stress at home often have emotions that

interfere with school day concentration resulting in reduced school performance. He

also said that it may be difficult for children to concentrate on school work at home

from separation-related stress.

Children with separated parents are not doing well in school, which is a

terrifying incident because education is not delivered by a school that is an institution

for learning. Thus, it merely becomes unproductive (Eschica 2010). Additional risk

factors identified in the research also include initial separation such as one parent's

abrupt departure, continuing parent conflict after separation, ineffective or negligent

parenting, loss of important relationships such as extended family members, and

financial / economic changes (Kelly, 2008).

According to Smith (as mentioned in Landucci, 2008), some kids are flexible

and adapt well to change due largely to effective coping strategies being

implemented, while other kids may react in the opposite direction. Children can lose

trust and see the separation of their parents in a complicated manner. Many kids

may be nervous and sad, while others may have more intense emotions. Smith also

found that the reaction of children to the separation of their parent varies depending

on the age of the child. Older children may have more resilience than others due to

their support systems, maturity level, and coping skills.

Family Problem. It is the most common cause of adolescents ' behavioral

problems. The origins of a broken home are parental separation, children born
outside marriage, parent death, discordant two-parent families, and step-families.

However, adolescence becomes risk-taking due to economic hardship, quality of

parenting, and exposure to stress (Amato, 2007).Affected adolescents use smoking

as coping mechanism to broken home. Aside from smoking, adolescents also are

engaged to drinking, taking illegal drugs, sexual activity, and juvenile delinquency as

coping strategies (Cruz &Berja, 2008)

It is pointed out in numerous studies that for reasons such as divorce,

breakup or death, breakdown of family unity carries the risk of behavioral and

emotional problems for children (Harland, Reijneveld, Brugman, Verloove, &

Verhulst, 2002). Evidence from the few published studies concerning the physical

health of children in one-parent families, suggests that these children have both a

higher rate of hospitalization and a higher consulting rate with their general

practitioner than two-parent children (Jennings & Sheldon, 1985).

According to (Doughty, 2008), the study adds to a wealth of data showing that

children suffer badly from parental break-up and that those raised by a single parent

are more likely to do poorly at school, suffer poor health and become adults with

crime, addiction and deprivation. While the evidence from the few published studies

on children's physical health in one-parent families suggests that these children have

both a higher rate of hospitalization and a higher rate of consultation with their

general practitioner than two-parent children (Wells & Rankin, 1991).

 There are reasons why this thing happens. Sometimes it may seem like the

only way they can get attention or be taken seriously and sometimes it can seem like

the only way to cope with or show difficult feelings (Cole, 2007).The greater society

points a finger at separation as the reason for a wide range of greater social

problems (Ahron, 2007).

There are many factors leading to the outcomes of a child. Thoughts and

decisions deeply attach to the family status. It is true that today the percentage of

divorce is higher than it was in the past. The outcomes of a child depend on the role

of both father and mother. Research has shown that broken family leads to many

bad results and two of them are psychology and decision for the future marriage.

Viewed from critical perspective, family plays a key role in children’s development

physically and mentally ( McGuirk, Mai, 2016).

Without exception divorce is a significant event in the life of any child. For the

child, divorce may represent a sense of loss, a sense of failure in interpersonal

relationships, and a prelude to a difficult transition to new life patterns.

(Magrab,1978) Family plays a crucial role in molding one’s personality, belief and

capability. Everything about a man mostly relies on the state of the family he

belonged. The way he acts towards other people could be accounted to the people

whom he often mingles with. Living under the same roof could also add to the

reasons why he is dependent on his family. Nevertheless, since each person has

this dependence on his family, any adversity would definitely affect his entire being.

These catastrophic family relationship problems, such as the separation of parents,

could have a severe impact on the individuals concerned, the children (Eshica,

2010). Children with separated parents are not doing well in school, which is a

terrifying incident because education is not delivered by a school that is an institution

for learning. It thus becomes simply unproductive. Additional risk factors identified in

the research also include initial separation such as one parent's abrupt departure,

continuing parent conflict after separation, ineffective or negligent parenting, loss of

important relationships such as extended family members, and financial / economic

changes (Kelly, 2008).

According to Soriano (2010), delinquency is also part of the teenagers '

behavioral issues. He said that juvenile delinquency is children and youth's illegal or

antisocial behaviour. Several hypotheses have centered on the causes of juvenile

delinquency on children from impoverished backgrounds, ignoring the fact that

children from affluent households often commit crimes.

According to (Doughty, 2008), the study adds to a wealth of data showing that

children suffer badly from parental break-up, and that those raised by a single parent

are more likely to do badly in school, suffer poor health, and fall into adult crime,

addiction, and poverty.

Igbinosa Victor Omoruyi in (2014) carried out the results that there is a

significant difference between single- parenting and academic performance of the

adolescents. There is a significant difference between Socio- economic status of the

adolescents and academic performance. And there is a positive relationship

between adolescents from broken homes and academic performance.

When, a marriage breakdown most men and women experience a diminished

capacity to parent. They give less time, provide less discipline, and are less sensitive

to their children. Many researches indicates that fatherless children are far more

vulnerable to poverty, violence, lawbreaking, drugs, and precocious sexual

behaviour; receive less schooling and are more apt to fail in school; and suffer other

social pathologies (Frank, 2006).

Children do not develop in a vacuum; they develop in the context of their

family, neighborhood, community, country and the world. In this context, children are

influenced by parents, siblings, other relatives, peers, school and groups which they

are a part. The media, community, and culture in which; they grow up and even the

events going on in the world influence. They are partly the product of social

influences, which affect their social development (Bilal, 2008).

Theoretical Framework

Broken Home (Homeby, 1990).According to Homeby (1990), broken home

is a home in which the parents are separated or divorced or are no more together as

a result of death. Children from such homes lack proper care and security.In the

same way Uche (2000), define a broken home mean a house in which the parental

are no more living together. Others researchers studies carry out on broken homes
seem to agree that broken home are associated with increase aggressive and

Juvenile delinquency in children.

Lovell (1993), opened that families spites by death, desertion, divorce or

prolong absence.In assessing the above definition such as a situation (broken home

can result to poor academic achievement in primary schools as once child misses

such opportunities of guide, securities affection and assistant where necessary.

Many people do not see broken homes as a social problem, which some how

affect children born into such homes. To this end this study aims to some extent see

how this affect a child in his academic achievement.A significant consequence of

broken homes is children from them are more likely to become involved that in

delinquency and crime. In study after study sociologist find this is to be true. But why

should this to be? The single parent (usually woman) must devote a good deal to

support and maintenance activities that are at least to some extent shared in two

parent’s family.

The children social life could also be affected because they became a

problem to their society juvenile delinquency, introvert, behavioural disorder etc. that

is a sociological deficiency.Children in broken families are more likely to be anxious,

depressed and their mental health problems tend to persist when they become

adults. They more have eating problems and disorders. They feel themselves lower

in competence, and in fact are likely to be less social and less responsive at home,
school and games. Children from broken homes have lower levels of emotional well-

being when they become adult. Children also face problems of adjustment.

The results are likely to apply to other parts of the state as well as to the

nation as a whole. The inquiry will be an important tool in the hands of supervisors

and counselors, as well as psychologists. It would also be relevant to teachers to

help their students in spite of the study problem will also try to some extent

suggested some hopeful advice and counseling to people who might like to apply

them to their marital life situation.

Research Questions

1. What are the lived experiences of children growing up in a broken family?

1.1 What are the factors that affect their living?

1.2 What are the insights can be gleaned from the lived experiences of these

children?

2.What are their coping mechanisms?

2.2 what are the effects of having a broken family into their academic life?

2.3 How do they manage their time in academic life and for having a broken

family
Methodology

Social constructivism was utilized in qualitative research. According to

Creswell (2013), social constructivism assumes that individuals find meaning and

understanding of the world they interact with. The meaning and understanding of the

world created by the individuals are subjective. They create varied and multiple

meanings to subjective experiences. Social constructivist approach aims to rely as

much as possible on the views of the participants in the situations they are in.

Crotty stated by Creswell (2013), identified three assumptions in thesocial

constructivism: individuals create meanings as they involve in the world they

interpret, making the researchers to use open-ended questions allowing the

participants to share their own views; human beings get involve and make sense of

the world historically and socially, making the researchers seek to understand the

context or setting of the participants and interpret what they discover based on the

interpretation formed by the researcher’s own experiences; and lastly, meanings are

basically generated socially, that is with the interaction with the human community.

Induction is used in qualitative research where the researchers generate meanings

from the collected data from the field.

Choosing participants in the data collection is essential to have a valid and

reliable data. In order to gather relevant data, researchers' may use purposive

sampling technique. The purposive sampling technique is a type of non-probability

sampling that is most effective when one needs to study a certain social problem

with people who experienced it first hand (Tongco, 2007).

Research participants are access that allow one-to-one interaction to share

their own ideas, beliefs, and attitudes towards the study (Madriz, 2000). The

Researchers will invite 3 participants in any age, male or female and is a member of

a broken family. The participants will be interviewed based on the questions the

researchers have formulated. The interview will be in a form of in-depth interview

then the researchers will proceed to analyzed the collected data.

All interviews and interactions with the participants of the study were

recorded. All of the verbalizations were transcribed into field text by the researchers.

The researchers used bracketing to identify and limit the researchers’ bias about the

study. As defined by Husserl (2011), bracketing is a method that sets aside

one’sassumptions or expectations about the phenomenon. The researchers saw to it

that their own beliefs, knowledge, values and experiences about parental infidelity

will be put aside to accurately describe and interpret the participants’ own life

experiences.

In the time when the participants confirmed their willingness to participate in

the study, consent forms had given which protect the privacy and confidentiality of

information provided by the participants were given to ensure ethical considerations.

Also, their availability for the in-depth interviews was considered. The decision of the

participants who chose to withdraw at any time during the study was respected.
References

Alam, N., Saha, S., & Van Ginneken, J. K. (2000). Determinants of divorce in a

traditional Muslim community in Bangladesh. Demographic Research, 3.

Amato, P.R. (2010). The effects of divorce and marital discord on adult children‟s

psychological well-being. American Sociological R view.

Avan, Bilal Iqbal. (2008) .Early Child Development. Karachi, Pakistan: Sayed
Oxford University Press Mass Printers.

Creswell, J. W., (2013) “Research Design: Qualitative, Quantitative and Mixed-

Method Approaches”, Sage Publications Inc.

Doughty, S. (2008, October 21). Broken home children are five times more likely to
suffer mental troubles. Retrieved July 6, 2013, from Mail Online News:
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1079510/Children-broken-
homestimes-likely-suffer-mental-troubles-says-Government-study.html

Eshica, H. (2010). Family transitions as stressors in children and adolescents.

Washington, D.C: American Psychiatric Press.

Henslin, H. James. (2009). Social Problems: A Down to Earth Approach. USA:

Pearson College Division

Homeby Y. Udi(1991) Educational and conventional Guidance in Nigerin

Secondary School Jos, Savana Press ltd.

Husserl, Edmund, (2011) “Ideas: General Introduction to Pure Phenomenology,

Translated by W.R. Boyce Gibson", London, New York: Collier, Macmillan.

Kelly, R. (2008). The measured self-esteem of children from broken, rejected,

and accepted families. Journal of Divorce, 363-369.
Landucci, Nicole M. (2008). Divorce on Children: What School Counselors Need to
Know? Retrieved on September 2, 2011 from http//www2.uwstout.edu/
content/lib/ thesis /2009 /2009landuccin.pdf.

Lauer, Robert H. & Jeanette C. Lauer. (2006). Social Problems and the Quality of
Life. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill.

Omoruyi, Igbinosa Victor. (2014). Influence of Broken Homes on Academic

Performance and Personality Development of the Adolescents in Lagos
State Metropolis, European Journal of Educational and Development
Psychology, vol.2:2, pp.10-23, http://www.eajournals.org/wp-
content/uploads/Influenceof-Broken-Homes-on-Academic-Performance-
and-Personality-Developmentof-the-Adolescents-in-Lagos-State-
Metropolis..pdf

Soriano, O. (2010). Juvenile delinquency and crime prevention . Quezon City:

Great Books Publishing.

Tyson, Diana F. (2008). Explaining Discrepant Findings for Performance Approach

Goals: The rule of emotion regulation during test taking. Retrieved on
September 2, 2011 from
http://dukespace.lib.duke.edu/dspace/bitstream/handle/
10161/622/D_Tyson_Diana_a_20 0805.pdf?sequence=1.

Uche, I (2000) and West (1980): Home environment and school London
University of London Press Ltd.

Vander Valk, I., Spruijt, E., Goede, M., Maas, C., and Meeus, W. (2005). Family
structure and problem behavior of adolescents and young adults: A growth-
curve study.Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 34(6),553-546.

Wilks, Scottt E. (2008). Resilience amid Academic Stress: The moderating Impact of
social support among Social Work Students. Retrieved on August 2, 2011
from http://www. journals.iupui.edu/index.php/advancesinsocialwork.