Children's Concepts of Divorce and Separation

Social science research on divorce has concentrated mainly on the consequences of divorce for children and on family-related moderators and stressors. Moderators outside the family and in particular communication in school and in children's social surroundings have been neglected. A participatory Austrian study, based on a multi-method research design and an innovative visual method (Concept Cartoons), included 60 children aged eight to ten years from diverse family backgrounds, divorced and non-divorced parents, and captured their concepts about divorce and their communication processes in their peer groups. This contribution presents the participants' definitions and sources of information, children's concepts about reasons for divorce, the divorce process and consequences of divorce. Results show children's specific use of terms, as well as a large variety of children's ideas about divorce. Parents' - wellbeing and fairness for parents regarding custody, contact and residency - was prioritized over child wellbeing.