Mid- and Late-Life Divorce and Parents’ Perceptions of Emerging Adult Children’s Emotional Reactions

Abstract

A paucity of research exists pertaining to the experiences of emerging adult children in the context of parental divorce. This study uses Paul R. Amato’s divorce-stress-adjustment framework to organize a set of predictors that potentially influence parents’ perceptions of their emerging adult children’s emotional reactions to a divorce. Data come from a nationally representative AARP study, from which we analyzed a sample of 283 parents who experienced a divorce at age 40 years or older. Results indicate that parental gender, nature of contact with the ex-partner, divorce timing, time spent contemplating divorce, a history of parental divorce, and the reason for divorce influence parents’ perceptions of their emerging adult children’s reaction to the divorce. Implications, limitations, and future direction for research are discussed.

KEYWORDS:

• child adjustment
• divorce
• family
• late-life divorce
• marriage
• midlife divorce
• transitions

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

Grateful appreciation is expressed to Xenia P. Montenegro, PhD, Team Lead/Senior Research Advisor, AARP, and the AARP Research Center for permission to use the AARP data set, The Divorce Experience: A Study of Divorce at Midlife and Beyond, for secondary analysis. The Office of Human Research Ethics at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill reviewed the data and the procedures proposed for the secondary analysis and determined that the submission does not constitute human subjects research as defined under federal regulations [45 CFR 46.102 (d or f) and 21 CFR 56.102(c)(e)(1)] and does not require institutional review board approval. The authors hold sole responsibility for the contents of the article.