Grandparental and overall social support as resilience factors in coping with parental conflict among children of divorce

Yoa Sorek

Children and Youth Services Review, 2020, vol. 118, issue C

Abstract: The quality of life (QoL) evaluations of children of divorced parents have been little studied. The literature focuses on the consequences of divorce for their wellbeing as reported by adults or examined using tools designed from the adult perspective. This study examines how risk (parental conflict) and resilience factors (perceived overall social support, closeness to grandparents, and open discourse with them about divorce) are related to the self-reported QoL of children of divorce. Cross-sectional online questionnaires for a child and one parent were completed by 122 children aged 7–17, from 86 Israeli families. Hierarchical linear models were employed, with mixed models accounting for the interdependency of children's data within each family. All risk and resilience factors were examined from the children's perspective, except parental conflict that was examined also from the parent’s perspective. Parental conflict was found to be negatively associated and overall social support and close relationship with grandparents were positively associated with children's QoL evaluations. The more the children were involved in parental conflict, the more QoL measures were associated with it. The study also supported three models in which perceived overall social support and perceived grandparental support moderated the association between parental conflict and QoL evaluations. The importance of examining the wellbeing of children of divorce from their own perspective is discussed. In terms of practical implications, the findings suggest the need to reduce the involvement of children of divorce in parental conflict and to strengthen their social support systems, particularly their relations with grandparents.

Keywords: Children of divorce; Quality of life (QoL); Parental conflict; Perceived overall social support; Perceived grandparental support; Closeness to grandparents (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:cysrev:v:118:y:2020:i:c:s019074092030880x

DOI: 10.1016/j.childyouth.2020.105443

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