The effects of marital separation or divorce on children have been widely researched, often relying on clinical samples, and the short-term and long-term consequences have been documented. Research findings are divergent: some studies suggest that adolescents are not adversely affected while other studies show that adolescents' functioning is affected in a permanent way by parental separation. Ambert and Saucier (1983) reviewed adolescents' perceptions of parents, controlling for gender and parental marital status. Their findings suggested that adolescents perceive their parents differently on the basis of marital status and gender. / Inspired by Ambert and Saucier's research, this exploratory study was based on interviews with eighteen adolescents, in an attempt to understand how family composition and gender influences adolescent perceptions of parents. The subjects were from divorced and intact families and the results were analyzed qualitatively. It was assumed that adjustment to parental separation or divorce would be reflected in the adolescents' perceptions of their parents. / Contrary to expectations, the findings of this study indicated that adolescents from both intact and divorced families perceived their parents in a similar way. These findings are attributed to several factors, including the absence of interparental hostility, the length of time since the separation and economic stability within these families.

No description available.

The focus of this study was on the development of the POSI-COPE group program for separated or divorced parents and an investigation of its efficiency and effectiveness. A survey of the literature in this area indicated that there was a paucity of systematic research in the field of group programs for separated parents coping with relationship dissolution. Utilizing a Program Development Model of research (Gottman and Markman, 1978), formative and summative strategies for planning and developing the POSI-COPE program were implemented. Through a distillation of major themes in the literature, the goals chosen for the development of the POSI-COPE program were: 1. To provide a supportive and reassuring group environment for participants, leading to a reduction in the intensity of anxiety experienced during the relationship dissolution process. 2. To share information about relationship dissolution and to help participants meet their needs through ventilation of feelings and effective problem-solving, leading to a reduction in the accumulation of negative feelings which inhibit the process of positive family change. 3. To encourage participants to be responsible for themselves and their behaviour and to focus on their strengths as parents (with or without custody of their children), leading to a greater sense of autonomy and self-esteem. The formative strategy for the development of the POSI-COPE program consisted of systematically describing the implementation of this program and monitoring its efficiency. The latter involved the use of self report post session and post program questionnaires. The feedback generated by these questionnaires confirmed that the participants had experienced the group environment as supportive and reassuring, that they had an opportunity to share and resolve some of their concerns and had gained information about the relationship dissolution process as well as affirming their identities as concerned parents. These findings suggested that the group leaders, the group discussions and the information provided were components that facilitated the success of the program. They also indicated the value of making minor modifications to the program and to extend its length. The summative strategy for the development of the POSI-COPE program consisted of assessing its effectiveness in achieving the three goals specified through the use of three measures, the State Trait Anxiety Inventory, the Adjustment to Change Scale and the Tennessee Self Concept Scale relative to a no treatment wait list control group. Analysis of covariance was used to test the hypotheses generated within this segment of the study. The results indicated that: 1. The POSI-COPE program did not meet the criteria for the reduction of the intensity of anxiety experienced during the relationship dissolution process. 2. The POSI-COPE program did not meet the criteria for the reduction of the accumulation of negative feelings which inhibit the process of positive family change. 3. The POSI-COPE program met two of the seven criteria for the achievement of a greater sense of autonomy and self-esteem through reducing Self Criticism Scores and increasing positive ratings of Personal Self. It did not meet the remaining five criteria of this goal which were to increase positive self ratings on Total Score, Physical Self, Moral-Ethical Self, Family Self, and Social Self. Reasons for, and implications of these results were discussed and suggestions for program change and for further research were described. / Education, Faculty of / Educational and Counselling Psychology, and Special Education (ECPS), Department of / Graduate

[no abstract included] / Arts, Faculty of / Social Work, School of / Graduate

A study to gather information on living conditions of boys and girls in Adamson High School who come from broken homes, in order to discover the individual needs of the students in order to promote greater interest and develop better citizenship.

Despite widespread interest in patterns of parenting after separation in Australia, the gaps in our knowledge remain large and fundamental. Most studies, including those overseas, have taken a quantitative tack, measuring the frequency and overall amount of face-to-face contact between children and non-resident parents (mostly fathers). But obviously there is more to parent�child contact than just time. The nature and quality of the interaction are also important � perhaps even more so. Recently there has been a push towards recognising and describing both qualitative and quantitative differences in the many ways that parental sharing of time with children can occur after divorce. This thesis attempts to identify and explore some of these differences by comparing five different patterns of care: (i) 50/50 shared care, (ii) little or no contact, (iii) holiday-only contact, (iv) daytime-only contact, and (v) �standard� contact (thought to occur every-other-weekend and half of each school holidays). A representative snapshot of parent�child contact schedules after separation is presented to provide some of the detail of arrangements within this typology. Two (complementary) types of data are used: qualitative data from a series of focus groups with separated parents, and quantitative data from three large representative samples of separated/divorced parents in Australia. Joining the dots between the various pieces of data, there is much to suggest that family dynamics in tandem with demographic factors temper the form that parent�child contact takes, with different combinations of factors clearly linked to qualitatively different patterns of postseparation parenting. While separating parents need to be encouraged to think more laterally about what arrangements might work best for their children and themselves, the data presented suggest that some parents in Australia are already being very creative and there is much diversity of arrangements. The central argument running through this dissertation is that arrangements that allow children to experience fluid, meaningful time with each parent are critical for children�s and parents� wellbeing. The ideas and data presented here � especially some of the more creative timesharing schedules developed by parents � are likely to be a useful resource for separated parents, and the family law professionals they approach for assistance, to reflect on when developing or refining parenting arrangements after divorce.

Thesis (Th. M.)--Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary, South Hamilton, Mass., 1998. / Abstract and vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 110-116).

Thesis (MArch(Prof)) -- University of Pretoria, 2008. / Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (M. Ed.(Opvoedkundige sielkunde))-Universiteit van Pretoria, 2006. / Includes bibliographical references. Available on the Internet via the World Wide Web.

Part I. Previous analyses of samples of women in the 1950's revealed that intentions for further births were affected by the sex of the previous children. More recent analyses found however that the effect of previous childrens' sex on fertility intentions has either diminished or disappeared completely, and some writers on the subject concluded that the decline in family size norms could account for that finding. The research reported herein, using samples of married women interviewed in the 1965 and 1970 National Fertility Studies, shows that at least among women with two children there has been no change over time in the tendency for mothers of similar sex children to be more likely to want an additional child than mothers of opposite sex children. The persistence of that tendency among mothers of two children argues strongly for including the sex of previous children as an independent variable in models of fertility intentions, since the decline in family size norms makes factors which affect the decision to have (or not have) a third child increasingly important. Part II. Since Stouffer's pioneering effort to ascertain the public's intolerance of various nonconformists, numerous researchers have relied on summary measures and scales to investigate intolerance and have stressed the effects of such general processes as aging and education on such measures. Parallel analyses of four of Stouffer's original items that were recently replicated and of four items included in the 1958 and 1971 Detroit Area Studies schedules indicates however that the use of such summary measures or scales is unjustified and that the processes of education and aging alone are inadequate in explaining changes in intolerance over time. While a small proportion of both samples are consistently (and perhaps ideologically) tolerant or intolerant in their responses to both sets of items, most respond situationally to the items and changes in tolerant and intolerant responses over time vary according to the item considered. Differential change by color in the Detroit sample suggests that short term and less predictable period effects must be considered (along with such general processes as aging and education) in explaining the level of intolerance at any given time, and changes in that level over time. Part III. An analysis of juveniles attending six Arizona high schools in the fall of 1975 shows that how homes were disrupted (by death, divorce or separation, or some other reason) has little impact on delinquent behavior and referrals to court, but whether homes were broken had a strong and consistent effect on both. Further, whereas it was the absence of a mother or father which affected the juveniles' delinquent behavior, it was the absence of a mother (but not a father) which affected their being referred to court.