In her welcome and opening remarks, Lynne Peyton--a consultant specialising in children's services in Northern Ireland--set the scene for the proceedings of this seminar on marital separation. She confirmed that the escalating extent of marital separation is a worldwide phenomenon and certainly one that represents an increasing challenge for…

This report examines whether the presence of children in marriage differentially influences the risk of wives or husbands initiating separation. The analytic sample consists of 9,118 first marriages from the Households, Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia survey (2001). Using event history and competing risks analysis, I find weak evidence…

Environmental or genetic influences, or both could account for the increased risk of divorce among the offspring of separated parents. Previous studies have used covariates to statistically control for confounds, but the present research is the first genetically informed study of the topic. The investigation used the Children of Twins Design with…

Men's violence against mothers and children as a context of separation significantly increases the immediate and longer-term parenting needs of affected children, according to a South Australian study of single mothers' transition and adaptation to living in a single parent household. Qualitative research interviews with 18 separated mothers who…

Investigated the association between levels of marital conflict and the self-esteem of children and adolescents. Results indicated the negative effects of conflict tended to be strongest when children's relationships were poor with both parents. However, for young females, conflict was also negatively related to self-esteem when relationships with…

The welfare of children in Lagos, Nigeria, after marital disruption was assessed using 1,000 social welfare case records. Findings include: single custody was commonly practiced; few of the women remarried; and many of the biological fathers were not responsible for the maintenance of their children, and the few that were defaulted regularly.…

Although research documents the adverse effects of parental divorce on children, there is little information on clinical intervention for this population. To empirically test the effectiveness and relative contribution of differing treatments, a program of planned, brief (6 weeks) intervention, aimed at altering children's negative attitudes or…

Assessed the role of marital discord in the outcome of a program training parents in behavioral techniques (behavioral parent training), and the effects of an adjunctive treatment of partner support training (PST) on outcome. Families with an oppositional or conduct disordered child underwent child management training alone or with PST. Measured…

Assessed socioeconomic determinants and probability of marital dissolution at five-year intervals for first legal and consensual marriages in Puerto Rico. Determined probability of dissolution was decreased by young children, wives' religious participation, and higher marital age; increased by wives' labor force participation, urban living, and…

This study examines changes in parents' marriages following older-child adoption, using in-depth interviews with seven couples prior to and following placement. The interviews indicated that parents' experiences followed similar patterns. Children's acting-out behavior and their ability to exploit parents' vulnerabilities placed stress on the…

Objective: The purpose of this study is to determine which factors best predict parental use of single versus multiple types of violence. Methodology: The study uses data from a Quebec telephone survey conducted with a representative sample of 2,469 mothers of children aged 0-17 years. The interview covered topics such as mother's attitudes and…

Background: This study examined the impact of family transitions, that is, parental separation, divorce, remarriage and death, upon the lives of Australian children and adolescents in a longitudinal study of temperament and development. Methods: Using longitudinal and concurrent questionnaire data, outcomes for young people experiencing…

Counselors should begin to think not only of the needs of children involved in the process of their parents' divorce, but of an approach to marriage counseling as a whole. Children participate in the context of divorce as family members in the social interaction that makes a family work or not work; there are, therefore, various stages or points…

Background: The clinical profile of depressive disorder in children and young people in Child Adolescent and Family Services (CAFS), Northampton was studied. Methods: Twenty-five patients who had attended the CAFS over a period of 2 years were analysed retrospectively. Results: The age range of subjects was 8 to 19 years. Majority of patients were…