Male Children of Divorce Grown Up: Parental Bonding, Relationship Satisfaction, Commitment and Sex Role Identification

Abstract

SynopsisThe long-term effects of divorce on adult male children of divorce were addressed by examining parental bonding, early and later father absence, relationship satisfaction, commitment and sex role identification. Volunteers, ages 24–36, (1) whose parents divorced before they were 12, (2) who lived with their mothers following divorce and (3) whose mothers did not remarry before their sons were 15, were administered 5 measures: the Personal Attributes Questionnaire; the Relationship Satisfaction Index; the Intimate Relationship Questionnaire; and 2 Parental Bonding Instruments, one for each parent. The results from this preliminary investigation suggest that Androgynous males perceived their fathers to be more caring than Masculine males (p < .05) and that Feminine males perceived their fathers to be generally more overprotective than the others (p < .05). Father Care was positively related to the Feminine dimension of sex role identification (p < .05) which, in turn, was positively related to Commu...