condition the impact of parental divorce on child well-
being?’ – Mandemakers & Kalmijn (2013)
Abstract
The effect of parental divorce on psychological well-being is reduced for
better educated mothers and for families with more pre-divorce economic
resources, but increased for better educated fathers.
Protective effect of having a better educated father and higher pre-
divorce social resources.
Introduction
Parental resources (social and economic) play a key role in understanding
the impact of parental divorce on child well-being.
The loss of resources may depend on the pre-divorce levels extent to
which parents can provide a safe and stable environment.
Possible mechanisms:
- Better educated parents are more aware of the potential negative
effects on children.
- People with more resources are able to retain the house they were
living in; context for children stays the same.
It is important to look at the resources of mother and father
simultaneously.
Educational level as indicator of parental socio-economic resources.
Also moderating effect of other parental shared resources on impact of
divorce examined.
Background and hypotheses
Following divorce, the household in which the child remains faces a
marked loss of economic resources.
- Loss of economies of scale
- Loss of father’s income
Socio-economic resources are important to child well-being, as these
buy better living conditions, better neighbourhoods, schools and various
goods and services that benefit children.
(Declining) socioeconomic resources explain a considerable part of the
effect of parental divorce well-being and behavioural problems for
children.
Social resources are believed to decline too after divorce.
- Quality of relationships with parents
- Quality of parenting
Parent-child relationship is very important to child well-being important
explanation of divorce effect.