Dysregulated cortisol is a risk factor for poor health outcomes. Children of distressed mothers exhibit dysregulated cortisol, yet it is unclear whether maternal distress predicts cortisol activity in later developmental stages. This longitudinal study examined the prospective relation between maternal distress during late childhood (9-12 years)…

This study examines whether intervention-induced changes in mother-child relationship quality and discipline led to short-term (6 months) and long-term (6 years) changes in children's coping processes in a sample of 240 youth aged 9-12 years when assessed initially. Data were from a randomized, experimental trial of a parenting-focused preventive…

This study examined whether the New Beginnings Program for divorced families led to improvements in youth's educational goals and job aspirations 6 years following participation and tested whether several parenting and youth variables mediated the program effects. Participants were 240 youth aged 9 to 12 years at the initial assessment, and data…

Appraisals about the implications of stressful events that are evaluated as involving a threat to self (negative self-evaluation, negative evaluation from others, rejection by others) have been shown to place youth at risk for the development of mental health problems. This longitudinal study tested a protective-stabilizing interactive model, in…

Program by risk interactions were assessed to evaluate whether the long-term effects of two preventive interventions for children from divorced families were moderated by baseline levels of risk. Six-year prospective relations between childhood (ages 9-12) and adolescence (ages 15-19) were examined in 68 children who comprised the control group of…

Assesses efforts to prevent mental health problems in children of divorce by highlighting the importance of using theory in the design and evaluation of prevention programs and by reviewing the empirical research on the efficacy of programs to improve outcomes for children of divorce. Also proposes two future directions for advancing theory-based…

This study presents a reanalysis of data from an effective preventive intervention for children from divorced families (S. A. Wolchik et al., 2000) to test mediation of program effects. The study involved 157 children, age 9-12 years, who were randomly assigned to a parenting program or a literature control condition. Program effects to reduce…

This study examines whether program effects on mother-child relationship quality and effective discipline mediated the 6-year longitudinal effects of the New Beginnings Program (NBP) to improve mental health and competence outcomes in 218 adolescents from divorced families in a randomized experimental trial. The NBP is a theory-based and…

Examined visitation problems from the perspectives of residential and nonresidential parents through interviews. Subjects were 341 fathers and 271 mothers from 378 divorcing families. Residential parents perceptions of visitation problems were correlated with concerns about their ex-spouse's parenting abilities. Anger and hurt about the divorce…

Examines predictors of resilience in children of divorce whose mothers participated in a preventive parenting program. Used within-group analysis and between group analyses with a control group to examine predictors of improved child adjustment. Between-group analyses showed that children were less likely to maintain program gains in externalizing…

Felner's transitional events model, which views post-divorce adjustment as a function of the environmental stressors a child faces and the interpersonal and intrapersonal resources available to the child, was used as an underlying framework for the development of a parent training program for divorced families. Five modifiable factors found to be…

This document describes a program for custodial parents which was designed to facilitate children's adjustment after parental divorce. Four steps in the development of the program are described: (1) examining existing literature for theoretical frameworks and empirical studies on the development of adjustment problems in children of divorce; (2)…

Examined whether children's cognitive biases moderated impact of stressful divorce-related events on adjustment in 9- to 12-year olds. Found that endorsing negative cognitive errors for hypothetical divorce events moderated relations between stressful divorce events and self- and maternal-reports of internalizing and externalizing symptoms for…

The role of the social network in adjustment takes on greater significance during the aftermath of divorce because of the many changes these networks undergo as a result of divorce. For most children of divorce, the father-child relationship changes dramatically and thus transactions within this relationship may be particularly impactful. This…

School psychologists rely heavily upon teachers' evaluation of children's classroom behavior as part of their assessment and intervention processes. However, some evidence suggests that teachers' ratings may fluctuate during the academic year, with higher levels being reported later in the year. This study assessed the comparability of different…