Strengths-Building Public Policy for Children of Divorce
INVESTING IN CHILDREN, YOUTH, FAMILIES, AND COMMUNITIES: STRENGTHS-BASED RESEARCH AND POLICY, Kenneth Maton, Cynthia Schellenbach, Bonnie Leadbeater, & Andrea Solarz, eds., American Psychological Association, 2004
Posted: 10 Sep 2009
Date Written: 2004
Abstract
Instead of focusing on the problems associated with divorce, this chapter delineates a strengths, based model of the relations among divorce policies, mediating factors,and children's outcomes. Little research has linked specific divorce policies to child well being following divorce. Based on an extensive review of the literature, several factors such as children's positive coping skills, low parental conflict, high warmth and consistency of the parents, and the quality of the contact with the noncustodial parent appear to mediate the effects of divorce. The chapter illustrates that policies that are designed to influence these mediators to maximize strengths and minimize risks will lead to the most positive child outcomes and concludes with a public health model for integrating research and policy.
Keywords: Divorce, children, strength
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