ent), inept parenting, postdivorce economic
hardship, interparental conflict, inadequate social
support, and the number of negative life events expe-
rienced (e.g., moving, changing schools). Children
who use active coping (e.g., seeking social support)
and who do not blame themselves for the separation
adjust better than those who cope via distraction or
avoidance or who engage in self-blame. An analysis of
sixty-three studies suggested that contact with non-
custodial fathers who exhibit authoritative parenting
is related to beneficial child outcomes. There is mixed
evidence on whether parental remarriage benefits
children.
Ameliorating the Impact of Divorce on
Children
Access to therapeutic interventions, especially
school-based support programs, is associated with im-
proved postdivorce adjustment. Perhaps the greatest
effort to help children has occurred through pro-
grams targeted at parents. A growing number of
states are offering (or mandating) education or medi-
ation programs for divorcing parents. Divorce media-
tion leads to speedier dispute resolution, greater
compliance in payment of child support, and greater
involvement of the father in the children’s lives. Al-
though parties who participate in mediation and in
education programs tend to be satisfied with them,
there is little evidence to suggest that they benefit
children. But absence of evidence is not equivalent to
evidence of absence. Evaluation research is acutely
needed to improve the efforts to help children whose
parents separate.
See also: CHILD CUSTODY AND SUPPORT;
MEDIATION
Bibliography
Allison, Paul, and Frank Furstenberg. ‘‘How Marital Dissolution
Affects Children: Variations by Age and Sex.’’ Developmental
Psychology 25 (1989):540–549.
Amato, Paul. ‘‘The Consequences of Divorce for Adults and Chil-
dren.’’ Journal of Marriage and the Family 62 (2000):1269–1287.
Amato, Paul, and Bruce Keith. ‘‘Consequences of Parental Divorce
for the Well-Being of Children: A Meta-Analysis.’’ Psychologi-
cal Bulletin 110 (1991):26–46.
Cherlin, Andrew, P. Lindsay Chase-Lansdale, and Christine
McRae. ‘‘Effects of Divorce on Mental Health throughout the
Life Course.’’ American Sociological Review 63 (1998):239–249.
Emery, Robert. ‘‘Divorce Mediation: Negotiating Agreements and
Renegotiating Relationships.’’ Family Relations 44 (1995):377–
383.
Emery, Robert. Marriage, Divorce, and Children’s Adjustment, 2nd
edition. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage, 1999.
Grych, John, and Frank D. Fincham. ‘‘Interventions for Children
of Divorce: Toward Greater Integration of Research and Ac-
tion.’’ Psychological Bulletin 110 (1992):434–454.
Hetherington, E. Mavis, and W. Glen Clingempeel. Coping with
Marital Transitions: A Family Systems Perspective 57 (1992):1–
242.
Sweet, James, and Larry Bumpass. ‘‘Disruption of Marital and Co-
habitation Relationships: A Social Demographic Perspective.’’
In T. Orbuch ed., Close Relationship Loss: Theoretical Perspec-
tives. New York: Springer-Verlag, 1992.
Wallerstein, Judith, and Joan Kelley. Surviving the Breakup: How
Children Actually Cope with Divorce. New York: Basic, 1980.
Frank D. FinchamDOMESTIC VIOLENCE
In general, the term ‘‘domestic violence’’ refers to vio-
lence that occurs in the home. Although violence in
the home can be directed toward children, the elder-
ly, or other household members, most often this term
is used to represent violence between adolescents
and/or adults who are currently or were previously in-
volved in a romantic or intimate relationship. Domes-
tic violence occurs between spouses, ex-spouses, and
couples who are dating or who dated previously. The
violence between these individuals is not limited to
the home setting and may occur in locations outside
the home as well.Types of Violence
Domestic violence can involve physical, sexual,
emotional, and psychological forms of abuse. Physical
violence can include but is not limited to pushing,
kicking, slapping, punching, and choking, and the
use of objects to inflict pain upon the other person.
Individuals may inflict sexual violence upon their
partners by forcing them to have sex against their
will, using sexual acts to degrade them, inflicting
physical pain during sexual intercourse, calling their
partners sexually degrading names, and requiring
them to engage in sex with other individuals. Vio-
lence can also be enacted in the form of emotional
and psychological abuse with the use of tactics such as
intimidation, insults, threat of harm, isolation, and
control of financial resources by the abuser.Incidence
Violence between intimate partners occurs
among people at all socioeconomic and education le-
vels and within all ethnic, racial, religious, age, and
sexual identity groups. The U.S. Department of Jus-
tice estimated that in 1998 about one million violent
crimes were committed against persons by their cur-
rent or former intimate partners. The majority of
these crimes (85%) were committed against women,
with women aged sixteen to twenty-four experiencing
the highest rate of violence. The Federal Bureau of124 DOMESTIC VIOLENCE