The Interactive Effects of Marital Conflict and Divorce on Parent-Adult Children's Relationships.

This study examines main effect and interactive models of the relations between marital conflict, divorce, and parent-adult child relationships, and gender differences in these relations. Data were drawn from a longitudinal study of a community sample (N = 585). Parental marital conflict and divorce were measured from age 5 through age 17. Mother-child and father-child relationship quality at age 22 was assessed in terms of Closeness-Support and Conflict-Control. Results indicate that both marital conflict and divorce were associated with poorer quality of parent-adult child relationships. Divorce moderated the link between marital conflict and subsequent negativity in mother-child relationships, with the estimated effects being stronger in continuously married families than in divorced families, especially for women.

Duke Scholars

Author Jennifer Lansford Sanford School of Public Policy

Author Kenneth A. Dodge Sanford School of Public Policy