Romantic Attachment Among Young Adults: The Effects of Parental Divorce and Residential Instability

Using an attachment theory perspective, variation in adult romantic attachment style outcomes were examined according to childhood experiences of parental divorce and residential instability. The sample was made up of 172 young adults who were recruited using snowball sampling via online social networking. A statistical difference on adult romantic attachment style was not found between individuals who experience parental divorce and those who did not, and parental conflict and stability of residence patterns did not have a statistical impact on attachment avoidance or anxiety. However, conflict, residential stability, and time with nonresidential parent statistically improved the predictive ability of attachment anxiety among those whose parents had divorced. Specifically, time with nonresidential parent moderated adult romantic attachment anxiety.     

Parental Conflict During Divorce as an Indicator of Adjustment and Future Relationships: A Retrospective Sibling Study

We assessed parental conflict during divorce and divorce stories, quality of relationship among siblings during divorce, and attitudes about romantic relationships later in life. Thirty-two undergraduate female participants (18–23 years old) whose parents divorced during the 7 to 13 year old age range completed the Sibling Relationship Questionnaire and an adapted version of the Adult Divorce and Sibling Relationship Interview. Older sibling participants endorsed higher levels of dominance toward younger siblings, more caretaking behavior, and higher levels of parental conflict than younger siblings. Analyses revealed overt conflict exposure related to less confidence in relationship sustainability as young adults. Content analysis demonstrated relationship formation problems and trust in partners.     

Differences Between College Students from Divorced and Intact Families

We examined five hundred college students from intact and divorced families along several measures of adjustment. Further, comparisons within the divorce group were made across gender and number of years since the divorce with the covariates of parents' marital happiness prior to the divorce, remarriage, and who the student lived with after the divorce statistically controlled. Measures of adjustment included sexual behavior, attitudes toward marriage, depression, self-esteem, and general psychological functioning (pathology, anxiety, expression). Multivariate analyses of variance indicated that students from divorced families had significantly more sexual partners and more negative attitudes toward marriage than students from intact families. In addition, a significantly higher percentage of women from divorced families had had sexual intercourse as compared to women from intact families. Finally, women with parents that divorced within the past year were significantly more expressive than women with parents that divorced more than five years ago and more expressive than men with parents that had divorced within the past five years. The results are discussed in terms of the resolution of intimacy issues for college students with divorced parents and implications are drawn.     

Parental Divorce and Romantic Attachment in Young Adulthood: Important Role of Problematic Beliefs

In the current study 45 university students with either divorced or continuously married parents were surveyed about their romantic attachment, positive emotionality, depressive symptomology, self-esteem, and, when applicable, their retrospective beliefs about their parents’ marital dissolution. Findings revealed that parental divorce did not predict attachment insecurity, depression, or low self-esteem. In fact, adult children of divorced parents (ACDP) reported increased compassion, awe, enthusiasm, and perspective taking. Among ACDP, a composite factor representing increased fear of abandonment, peer rejection, and maternal blame was positively associated with adult attachment anxiety, even while controlling for parental conflict and divorce-related socioenvironmental disruption. Results are discussed in terms of their support of a complex understanding of the long-term effects of parental divorce, and in their inconsistency with a purely pathogenic model of parental divorce.     

The Emergence of a Specific Kind of Individualization Habitus Among Divorced Women

Previous research has consistently found that divorce is associated with psychological distress. This study expands existing research by considering age, education, employment, income, length of divorce, number of children, and economic hardship as predictors of postdivorce psychological distress among divorced women in Iran. This study examines 800 divorced women in Iran 30 to 48 years old who had been divorced for no more than 2 years. Results demonstrated that education, number of children, and economic hardship together predict 63.6% of the variance in psychological distress among divorced women. Economic hardship was found to be the strongest contributor. Recommendations for researchers and implications for clinicians are discussed.     

Forgiveness in Romantic Relationships: The Roles of Attachment,Empathy, and Attributions

Therapists can benefit from a more nuanced understanding of underlying processes associated with romantic partners forgiving one another. Greater understanding of the processes linked with forgiveness has the potential to improve therapists' facilitation of forgiveness between partners. Departing from the status quo, the purpose of this investigation was to explore benign attributions and empathy as mechanisms linking attachment with forgiveness. After conducting a longitudinal structural equation model with a sample of young adults in romantic relationships (N = 171), the results showed that benign attributions mediated the association between anxious attachment and forgiveness, and empathy mediated the association between avoidant attachment and forgiveness. Clinically, targeting working models of attachment that underlie benign attributions and empathy may facilitate forgiveness.     

The Family Home as Attachment Object for Preschool Age Children After Divorce

This paper focuses on the results of clinical interviews which showed comparative differences between a divorced group of preschool age children living in the fmaily home and a cohort group moved from the family home. Analysis showed statistically significant differences in these categories: child's psychological security, perception of family relationships, and attitudes toward the family home. This work has implications for joint custody arrangements after divorced, as well as giving added information to parents and professional persons who are attempting to guide preschoolers with this acute family change. This study presents a challenge for society and health professionals to understand more of the developmental intricacies of mourning for different age children and of the role that object attachment plays for children in times of crisis. It offers information and a further challenge to understand more fully the general role of object attachment in the lives of preschoolers and in this process aids the development of preventive programs for children of divorce.     

Our Divorce Culture: A Durkheimian Perspective

Comparative studies of children from divorced and intact families consistently find that children of divorced marriages have more short- and long-term psychological and social issues than children from intact marriages. This has led to the need for an evaluation of our divorce culture. The purpose of this research is to analyze the general population's attitudes on divorce involving children by gender, race, age, socioeconomic status, and participation in religious activities to see if our opinion of divorce is corresponding to the reality of its effect on children. Research-based divorce education programs have been shown to produce positive results in social and psychological readjustment for both children and adults. The findings of this study allow research-based divorce education programs to identify where to focus their services for children and adults. In addition, these findings support the implementation of policy to mandate the development of research-based divorce education programs in each state.     

Predictors of Divorce Adjustment: Stressors,Resources, and Definitions

We used data from 208 individuals who divorced during a 17‐year longitudinal study to examine factors that predict adjustment to marital disruption. Using stress and coping theory as a guide, we hypothesized that adjustment would be associated with variables reflecting stressors, resources, and people's definitions of the divorce. Contrary to expectations, we found little evidence that stressors (large declines in per capita income, losing friends, or moving) affected divorce adjustment, except among individuals who were not employed. Adjustment was positively associated with income, dating someone steadily, remarriage, having favorable attitudes toward marital dissolution prior to divorce, and being the partner who initiated the divorce. In addition, older individuals showed some evidence of poorer adjustment than did younger individuals.     

After the Divorce

The present study compares postdivorce adjustment factors among older, long-married persons with similar familial factors among younger divorced persons. Data collected from personal interviews indicate that older divorced persons are not devastated by their divorce. Although these two groups do not differ in their overall scores of emotional health as measures by the General Well-Being Scale, within certain categories the older persons appear to be emotionally healthier. Statistically significant differences between the two samples include: importance of family closeness; conflict in relationships; and forewarning of the divorce from family members. There are also differences in the familial factors that predict well-being for the two age groups. Professionals intervening at all system levels should be sensitive to age differences and incorporate familial factors that ameliorate postdivorce adjustment. Implications for practice with older divorced persons include strengthening parent/adult child relationships and creatively designing programs at macro and micro levels to decrease family conflict. With younger divorced persons, conflict mediation with the family following divorce is necessary.     

Socioeconomic,sociodemographic and attitudinal correlates of the tempo of divorce

The association between sociodemographic, demographic, and attitudinal measures and the timing or tempo of marital dissolution over a 14-year time span is examined. Separation is considered equivalent to divorce. Early and late divorce are differentiated by whether the event occurred before or after the average number of years married prior to divorce. Data were obtained on husbands and wives within childbearing years (up to 39 years) in the 1st years of the 1st marriage. A random stratified sample of 610 couples was drawn from records of marriages in a midwestern county between 1972-77. Reinterviews were conducted on 544 couples in April 1985. socioeconomic variables included educational attainment, occupational prestige, wife's employment status, wife's future work plans, husband's attitude to wife's future work plans, total family income, and level of satisfaction with current financial status. Demographic variables are age at marriage, number of children in 1985, marital duration, and desired family size. Attitudinal items were religiosity and gender role orientations (traditionalism, modernism, egalitarianism). Exposure to divorce was not equitably distributed for the 108 who divorced, but this was not statistically significant. The results indicate that those divorced earlier were wives who worked outside the home, worked at more prestigious jobs, planned to be employed throughout married life, and whose father had a higher level of educational attainment. This finding is not consistent with prior research which has shown that favorable socioeconomic conditions lower the probability of divorce. The timing of divorce was affected by the presence of children. Those married at younger ages divorced earlier and couples with children delayed divorcing longer than couples without children. These findings were consistent with earlier research. Catholic wives delayed divorce longer than non-Catholic wives. Males lower in sexual satisfaction divorced earlier. Divorce was postponed longer for husbands with traditional values and wives who had higher scores on egalitarianism. Wives with scores on modernism had earlier divorces than wives scoring lower on modernism. The tempo of divorce was in multiple classification analysis predicted best by wife's employment status and number of children. Cross-classification was not possible.     

Post-Divorce Father Custody

Summary

This study examined the effects of different custodial arrangements following divorce and the impact they have on the adult romantic functioning of the children. It used 72 undergraduate participants coming from mother custody, father custody, or non-divorced backgrounds. Results indicated that custodial arrangement had largely no significant effect on the satisfaction felt in relationships, or in general attachment style. The gender of the participant was found to be a factor, with females exhibiting more security in romantic relationships and males showing a tendency to place relationships as secondary in their lives. While non-significant findings for the custody main effect seem discouraging at first glance, a discussion ensues speculating as to the utility of parental divorce as a useful sole independent variable in future studies. With divorce becoming commonplace in America today, it seems that studying parental styles may yield results more germane to current issues.     

Adaptation to Divorce: An Attachment-Based Intervention with Long-Term Divorced Parents

ABSTRACT

The aim of this attachment-based intervention was to elaborate, through shared narratives in a divorce recovery group, a representation of the events, the self, and the relationship that contribute to a better adaptation to the situation of divorce. After an 8-month intervention, participants felt better (negative affect was reduced and positive affect was increased) and less lonely (scores in both social and romantic loneliness decreased). Participants were also rated as more secure after the intervention. These findings suggest positive changes in the model of self following the intervention.     

Single Mothers with Custody Following Divorce

The experience of being a single mother with custody following divorce is influenced by many variables across several levels of interaction, such as age of mother and child, potential for remarriage, coping skills, social networks and income changes. Cross-sectional studies have examined additional variables such as time since divorce and level of family religiosity and subsequent impact on individual well-being. Whereas most studies took a cate- gorical approach to examining the experience of divorce, a few refreshing studies were based on an ecological systems model. As divorce also involves building a new life, longitudinal research pro- vides the best picture of how divorced women accomplish this task. Long-term research clearly points to the fact that divorce is an event whose impact is individual and very often life long. Researchers have provided valuable information to build meaningful programs of intervention for divorced mothers. Perhaps the biggest challenge is to design flexible programs which can grow and change with the needs of the divorced mother. Future research will be most beneficial when it addresses the divorced mother family as a healthy family unit.     

Relation Between Parental Divorce and Adjustment in College Students

The role of parental divorce on the adjustment of emerging adults has been understudied and mostly limited to first-year college students. This study sought to examine the relation between parental divorce and adjustment in college students to identify differences in students from intact and divorced families while also examining gender and age differences. Results indicated no adjustment differences as a whole or by gender for intact and divorced families. However, students who were older when their parents divorced had higher levels of self-esteem than those whose parents divorced when they were younger. Implications of the study are discussed.     

Attachment Styles,Loneliness, Quality,and Stability of Marital Relationships

Quality and stability of intimate relationships are determined by various factors. Associations between attachment styles, social and emotional loneliness, competence in being alone, and relationship qualities in couples have not yet been investigated. Sixty-three couples completed self-report measures of current relationship quality and duration, attachment style, and loneliness. Marital quality is predicted by means of experienced emotional loneliness, fearful attachment style, age, and participation in relationship counseling (R ² _corrected = .568). Length of relationship is predicted by age, experienced social loneliness, and competence in being alone (R ² _corrected = .648). Attachment styles, loneliness, age, competence in being alone, and participation in relationship counseling are all possible determinants of relationship qualities.     

Adult Recall of Childhood Psychological Maltreatment in “Adult Children of Divorce”: Prevalence and Associations With Concurrent Measures of Well-Being

One hundred and eighteen adults whose parents divorced when they were 15 years of age or younger participated in an Internet survey of adult recall of psychological maltreatment and standardized outcomes including other forms of maltreatment, self-sufficiency, depression, alcohol dependency, attachment style, and self-esteem. It was hypothesized that rates of psychological maltreatment would be associated with all of these outcomes. Most, but not all, of the associations were borne out. The findings shed light on one way in which children of divorce are at risk for poor outcomes and highlight the need for interventions for divorced parents and children to address the issue of psychological maltreatment.     

Psychiatric Symptoms and Perceived Need for Psychiatric Care After Divorce

Abstract

The study investigated level of psychiatric symptoms and perceived need for psychiatric care among recently divorced males and females. Furthermore, various demographic factors and characteristics of the marriage and divorce related to psychiatric symptoms and perceived need for psychiatric care, were identified. Six hundred fifty eight recently divorced males and females living in five different counties in Norway participated. Their level of psychiatric symptoms was compared with the general Norwegian population. Divorced individuals had substantially higher level of psychiatric symptoms as compared to the general population. No consistent gender differences were observed. For both males and females, level of conflict with the ex-spouse and being leaver or being left, were the variables being most strongly related to psychiatric symptoms and need of psychiatric care. However, the variables accounted for only a modest proportion of the variance in the mental health outcome.     

Parental Divorce and Premarital Couples: Commitment and Other Relationship Characteristics

Parental divorce is thought to affect the romantic relationships of young adults, especially with respect to their certainty about the relationship and perceptions of problems in it. We examined these connections with a random sample of 464 coupled partners. Compared with women from intact families, women from divorced families reported less trust and satisfaction, but more ambivalence and conflict. For men, perceptions of relationships were contingent on the marital status of their partners' parents, although men from intact and divorced families did differ on structural constraints that affect commitment. Young adults who were casually dating showed the strongest effects of parental divorce, suggesting that the repercussions of parental divorce may be in place before the young adults form their own romantic relationships.