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Parental Divorce and Adjustment in Adulthood: Findings from a Community Sample

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 July 1999

Thomas G. O'Connor ,
Karen Thorpe ,
Judy Dunn  and
Jean Golding
Thomas G. O'Connor
Affiliation:
Institute of Psychiatry, London, U.K.
Karen Thorpe
Affiliation:
Institute of Child Health, University of Bristol, U.K.
Judy Dunn
Affiliation:
Institute of Psychiatry, London, U.K.
Jean Golding
Affiliation:
Institute of Child Health, University of Bristol, U.K.
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Abstract

The current study examines the link between the experience of divorce in childhood and several indices of adjustment in adulthood in a large community sample of women. Results replicated previous research on the long-term correlation between parental divorce and depression and divorce in adulthood. Results further suggested that parental divorce was associated with a wide range of early risk factors, life course patterns, and several indices of adult adjustment. Regression analyses indicated that the long-term correlation between parental divorce and depression in adulthood is explained by quality of parent–child and parental marital relations (in childhood), concurrent levels of stressful life events and social support, and cohabitation. The long-term association between parental divorce and experiencing a divorce in adulthood was partly mediated through quality of parent–child relations, teenage pregnancy, leaving home before 18 years, and educational attainment.

Keywords

Child developmentdepressiondivorcelongitudinal studies
Type
Research Article
Information
The Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry and Allied Disciplines , Volume 40 , Issue 5 , July 1999 , pp. 777 - 789
Copyright
© 1999 Association for Child Psychology and Psychiatry

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