Divorce: Causes and Consequences

360 Pages·2006·2.21 MB·English

by  Professor Alison Clarke-Stewart

Current Perspectives in Psychology

Divorce
Causes and Consequences
Alison Clarke-Stewart
and Cornelia Brentano
YALE UNIVERSITY PRESS NEW HAVEN AND LONDON
Copyright © by Alison Clarke-Stewart and Cornelia Brentano.
All rights reserved.
This book may not be reproduced, in whole or in part, including illustrations,
in any form (beyond that copying permitted by Sections and of the
U.S. Copyright Law and except by reviewers for the public press),
without written permission from the publishers.
Printed in the United States of America.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Clarke-Stewart, Alison, –
Divorce: causes and consequences / Alison Clarke-Stewart and Cornelia Brentano.
p. cm. — (Current perspectives in psychology)
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN-: ----(alk. paper)
ISBN-: ---(alk. paper)
. Divorce—Psychological aspects. . Children of divorced parents—Psychology.
. Child custody. I. Brentano, Cornelia. II. Title. III. Series.
HQ.C 
.—dc

A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.
The paper in this book meets the guidelines for permanence and durability of
the Committee on Production Guidelines for Book Longevity of the
Council on Library Resources.
         
In memory of my academic father, William Kessen,
and happy days at Yale.
AC-S
To my mother, Katharina Lehnen, with much gratitude
for all her support.
CB

Contents
Series Foreword by Alan E.Kazdin ix
Preface xi
CHAPTER 1
The Social Context of Divorce 1
CHAPTER 2
At Risk for Divorce 29
CHAPTER 3
A Marriage Ends 52
CHAPTER 4
Adults in the Aftermath of Divorce 67
CHAPTER 5
Effects of Divorce on Children 106
CHAPTER 6
What Causes Children’s Problems? 131
CHAPTER 7
What Helps Children Adjust? 153
CHAPTER 8
Child Custody and Child Support 176
CHAPTER 9
Remarriage and Stepfamilies 213
CHAPTER 10
Divorce:The Future 234
Notes 247
References 279
Index 337

Series Foreword
Current Perspectives in Psychology presents the latest discoveries and
developments across the spectrum of the psychological and behavioral
sciences. The series explores such important topics as learning, intelli-
gence, trauma, stress, brain development and behavior, anxiety, inter-
personal relationships, education, child rearing, divorce and marital
discord, and child, adolescent, and adult development. Each book fo-
cuses on critical advances in research, theory, methods, and applica-
tions and is designed to be accessible and informative to nonspecialists
and specialists alike.
This book focuses on divorce and its precursors, causes, and
consequences. Among the topics explored are history and trends in
divorce, theories of divorce, characteristics that place individuals at
risk for divorce, the processes and consequences of divorce, custody
issues, child rearing, single parenting, postdivorce adjustment of chil-
dren and adults, remarriage, and stepfamilies. The authors cover the
latest research on each of these topics to convey the multiple effects of
divorce. In addition to presenting research, the authors suggest na-
tional policies, based on empirical findings, that would support cou-
ples before divorce and promote parent and child adjustment after
divorce.
Drs. Clarke-Stewart and Brentano have provided an authorita-
tive book on the topic by showing the many influences on adult and
child adjustment after divorce. They have underscored the connec-
tions of marriage and divorce with many other topics, including em-
ployment and income, personality characteristics of one’s partner, re-
ligious affiliation, and patterns of interaction among couples and
how these all can converge to place families at risk for divorce. The
authors weave theory, research, and examples in a way that provides
information useful for individuals, families, and policymakers inter-
ested in overcoming the effects of divorce and improving family
functioning. The book provides a model for integrating multiple
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