Mother-Child Interaction Following Marital Separation

Abstract

This study used longitudinal observation data to examine the child-mother relationship after marital separation. Mother-child interaction in 60 separated families was videographed in standardized situations at three measurement times (10, 25, and 40 months following separation) and compared with data from a cross-sectional observation of 60 matched complete families. At the first measurement, children were aged 4–10 years, and 57% were male. Trained raters used 12 categories to evaluate the interaction behavior of mothers and children. Multivariate analyses of variance (general linear model) were used to assess relations between mother-child interaction and family structure (separated vs. complete), child’s age, child’s gender, and time of measurement. Results showed that interactions in separated families differed from those in complete families with clear signs of strain in the mothers during early phases following marital separation. Regression analyses showed how specific maternal behaviors clearly related to changes in the interaction behavior of their child. It is concluded that the findings provide a differentiated insight into child interaction behavior following parental separation, particularly during the early phase.