Dissertations and Theses @ UNI
Availability
Open Access Thesis
Keywords
Children of divorced parents; Forgiveness; Parent and child; Academic theses;
Abstract
Current literature cites that children with divorced parents are susceptible to maladjustment. This outcome is especially likely when family conflict exists. One purpose of the current study was to examine and clarify the relationships between parental divorce, interparental and parent-child conflict, and the health and well-being of children as they reach college age. Extant literature also supports the notion that interpersonal forgiveness has a special association with divorce, parent-child relationships, conflict, and mental health. This study therefore purported to examine the role of state and trait forgiveness with respect to the associations between parental divorce status, family conflict and college student's mental health. Two hundred ninety-eight general psychology students at a Midwestern university (73.5% women, 26.5% men) reported demographic information including the divorce status of their biological parents and the nature of their family structure. Student perceptions of parent-child and interparental conflict were assessed along with student health and well-being variables (life satisfaction, depressive symptoms, anxiety, and somatic complaints). Additionally, the students' levels of state and trait forgiveness were measured. Participants with divorced parents reported lower levels of life satisfaction but not more somatic complaints, depressive symptoms, or anxiety than those with intact families. As expected, negative correlations existed between both parent-child and interparental conflict and students' well-being. Interestingly, parental divorce status correlated with conflict between students and their fathers, but not for conflict with mothers. The clarification of these associations has significant legal and therapeutic implications for families struggling with divorce or conflict. Correlations between divorce or conflict and student well-being outcomes were expected to be moderated by the student's level of forgiveness. Multiple regression analyses suggested that trait forgiveness served to protect students from increased anxiety when father-child conflict existed. State forgiveness also served as a protective factor, mitigating the negative effects of self-blame for interparental conflict on student's life satisfaction. This type of forgiveness further buffered the association between father-child conflict and expected decreased life satisfaction and increased depression for students. This study provides support for further development and validation of forgiveness theory and clinical intervention with respect to divorce and family conflict.
Year of Submission
2007
Degree Name
Master of Arts
Department
Department of Psychology
First Advisor
Carolyn Hildebrandt
Second Advisor
John Williams
Third Advisor
Suzanne Freedman
Date Original
2007
Object Description
1 PDF file (94 leaves)
Copyright
©2007 Kimberly Jorgensen
Language
en
File Format
application/pdf
Recommended Citation
Jorgensen, Kimberly, "Parental Divorce, Family Conflict, and the Well-Being of College Students: Forgiveness as a Protective Factor" (2007). Dissertations and Theses @ UNI. 3101.
https://scholarworks.uni.edu/etd/3101
Comments
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