Research on the effects of divorce has generally focused on mothers and children, neglecting the father. This study examined post-divorce problems in divorced custodial fathers (N=20), divorced noncustodial fathers (N=20), and divorced childless men (N=20). The three groups and a group of married fathers (N=20) were compared on a measure of morale…

Although popular literature cites between 25,000 and 100,000 parental child snatchings a year, no empirical studies have been conducted to support this estimate. To determine an empirical estimate of the extent of parental child snatchings, telephone interviews were conducted by Louis Harris and Associates with a representative cross section of…

The divorce explosion has placed a substantial burden on the judicial system of the United States. About 10 percent of divorce cases involve child custody battles. The adversarial legal process may be contrary to the children's best interest. Custody mediation has been used as an alternative to court litigation. California law requires an attempt…

Past research on child support payments has suggested that a large problem exists with post-divorce payments of child support. Much of this research, however, suffers from the methodological flaws of mixing together people who were divorced with people who were never married and of questioning only the custodial parents. This study surveyed a…

A program of group psychoeducation and support for single custodial fathers (SCFs) is proposed. Their population in the U.S. grew over 400% between 1970-2000 to over 2 million. The proposed program is unique with special emphasis on SCFs, featuring psychoeducational, supportive and affective components. Areas covered include: special challenges…

Contested child custody cases between divorcing parents provide a context in which particular ideologies of the family are articulated, reproduced, and legitimized in legal practices. The relationship between legal and extralegal categories was examined in a review of 32 divorce cases, 13 from family court and 19 from circuit court. Data came from…

Many states are adopting joint custody legislation to support continued relationships between children of parental divorce and both of their biological parents. This study examined the effects of joint versus maternal legal custody, whether or not the stepfather had biological children from a prior marriage, and the sex and age of an adolescent on…

This study examined two competing hypotheses regarding the competence of single custodial fathers which have implications for considering parents' gender in awarding child custody: (1) parenting differences are based on gender, and single mothers will have higher parenting scores than single fathers; and (2) changes in role responsibilities…

Although 41 percent of all marriages are remarriages for one or both partners, little is known about the impact of this change in marital status on various aspects of family life. To assess the linkage between the remarriage household and the labor force, the legal system, visitation with non-custodial parents and grandparents. relations between…

The analysis of in-depth interviews with 40 divorced women provides some insight into these women's experiences of the bargaining and negotiating process, both in the divorce and with child support and alimony payments after the divorce. One study has shown that the average woman's standard of living declines by 72 percent 1 year after divorce,…

Presents the text of a lecture that looks at the declaratory, procedural, and monitoring features of a Children Act that would encompass lessons from the past to enhance the future of Scottish children. Also discusses four major questions at the heart of child-centered legislation. (TJQ)

This paper applies what is currently known about gay fathers to the more specific issues of the non-custodial gay father. Good parenting is not easy for any father, but being a successful gay father is even more difficult. Since the gay father is typically a non-custodial parent, he must deal with his grief about the loss of contact and quality…

Uses family systems theory to conceptualize family dissolution and child custody disputes. Describes a family assessment model involving a therapy team with each member responsible for a family subsystem. The role of each therapist and the functioning of the team is outlined. Criteria for determining custody recommendations are identified. (JAC)

In an attempt to understand perceptions of custody arrangements from the perspective of children with a focus on sibling and stepsibling relationships, exploratory research was conducted. Lengthy, unstructured interviews were conducted with 12 college students who ranged in age from 18 to 37. Data were gathered on family communication and…

No published research has investigated the impact of joint custody on the adjustment of children of divorce who become stepchildren. This research examined the differential effects of joint versus maternal custody, structural complexity (presence or absence of stepfather's children from a prior marriage), and sex and age of adolescent on…