Contact met ouders na de scheiding: Verschil in het functioneren van adolescenten die met één ouder contact hebben of met beide ouders

Abstract

The aim of this study was to research if there was a difference in functioning between adolescents who have contact with both parents and adolescents who only have contact with one parent after divorce. Functioning was divided into the following variables: Parent-adolescent relationship quality, externalizing behavior, internalizing behavior and school performance. Data was collected through the questionnaire ‘Scholieren en gezinnen 2013’. Participants were 443 high school students with divorced parents from a convenience sample of 2414 high school students. The age ranged from 11 to 17 years old (M = 13.74, SD = 1.02) and 1171 boys and 1231 girls participated. Findings indicate that post-divorce contact between adolescent and parents correlates with how the adolescents rate the relationship quality with their parents. No significant differences in internalizing behavior and school performance were found between adolescents who have contact with both parents or one parent after divorce. There was a significant difference in delinquency between adolescents with or without contact with their fathers after divorce. Adolescents from divorced families who didn’t see their father anymore reported more delinquent behavior than adolescents who still have contact with both father and mother. These findings give new indications for future research and policies regarding post-divorce contact.