Protecting Children from the Consequences of Divorce: a Longitudinal Study of the Effects of Parenting on Children's Coping Processes

Overview

Journal Child Dev

Specialty Pediatrics

Date 2011 Feb 5

PMID 21291440

Citations 22

Authors

Clorinda E Velez

Sharlene A Wolchik

Jenn-Yun Tein

Irwin Sandler

Affiliations

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Abstract

This study examines whether intervention-induced changes in mother-child relationship quality and discipline led to short-term (6 months) and long-term (6 years) changes in children's coping processes in a sample of 240 youth aged 9-12 years when assessed initially. Data were from a randomized, experimental trial of a parenting-focused preventive intervention designed to improve children's postdivorce adjustment. Three-wave prospective mediational analyses revealed that intervention-induced improvements in relationship quality led to increases in coping efficacy at 6 months and to increases in coping efficacy and active coping at 6 years. Tests of the mediated effects were significant for all 3 indirect paths. Results are discussed in terms of pathways to adaptive coping and implications for the implementation of preventive interventions targeting coping.

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