The effect of parental divorce on the parent-child relationship

Abstract

We use the NEtherlands Longitudinal Lifecourse Study (NELLS) to investigate the effect of parental divorce on the parent-child relationship. Specifically, we will examine the difference between the mother-child and the father-child relationship. Aside from this difference, the moderated effect of the parents’ educational level will also be examined. Overall, we argue that divorce will have a negative effect on the parent-child relationship. We expect this effect to be stronger for the father-child relationship, since an absence of custody and a non-residential living situation is more common for fathers than for mothers. Furthermore, we argue that higher educated parents can minimize the impact of divorce on the parent-child relationship through the means of more financial, cognitive, and social resources. Our analyses indicate that there is a negative effect of divorce on the parent-child relationship, where the father-child relationship suffers more from divorce than the mother-child relationship. We do not find an effect of the parents’ educational level on the parent-child relationship post-divorce.