Abstract
ObjectiveThis research explores the implications of father absence due to divorce on young adults' well‐being and romantic relationships.BackgroundStudies have demonstrated the negative implications of father absence, a common consequence of divorce, on children's development. However, previous research has not systematically compared complete versus partial father absence.MethodYoung adults who, as children, experienced complete (n = 38) or partial (n = 41) father absence were compared with 40 participants in a father‐presence control group.ResultsCompared with those in the control group, young adults in the partial father‐absence group reported higher psychopathology and maternal overprotection, and lower maternal care, romantic intimacy, commitment, and passion. Under elevated maternal care, the partial‐absence group reported lower dyadic adjustment and consolidated sense of identity. Participants in the complete‐absence group reported higher self‐criticism and maternal overprotection and lower maternal care than controls.ConclusionPartial father absence might have particularly pernicious consequences for young adults' well‐being.ImplicationsClinical and public policy implications are discussed.
Highlights
Divorce constitutes a severe family stress or (Hetherington & Stanley-Hagan, 1999) that is often associated with maladjustment in children of all ages (Amato, 2001, 2010; Amato & Dorius, 2010; Bernardi & Radl, 2014; Cummings & Davies, 2010; Harold & Leve, 2012; Hetherington et al, 1998)
Maternal care was positively correlated with all romantic relationship measures, including satisfaction, intimacy, commitment, and passion, as well as with identity consolidation, and was negatively correlated with levels of self-criticism, psychopathology, and maternal overprotection
Maternal overprotection was positively correlated with levels of psychopathology and self-criticism, negatively correlated with identity, and marginally significantly correlated with less passion (p = .056)
Summary
This research explores the implications of father absence due to divorce on young adults’ well-being and romantic relationships. It is important to evaluate whether partial fathering (i.e., “partial father absence” as described )—that is, a variable amount of contact with the father—would have different outcomes for children’s well-being than the complete absence of father–child contact (i.e., a discontinuation of any contact with the father following the parents’ divorce) Such a comparison is even more important given the findings discussed suggesting that the quality of father involvement as well as its context may be more important than the quantity of contact (Adamsons & Johnson, 2013; Amato et al, 2009). Another important limitation of previous research is the relative neglect of the implications of divorce-related father absence in young adulthood We hypothesized that the expected differences between complete and partial father absence, and between both father-absence groups and the father-presence group, will be pronounced in low vs. high levels of maternal care
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