Residential and Nonresidential Parents' Perspectives on Visitation Problems

Abstract

Visitation problems were examined from the perspectives of residential and nonresidential parents on 3 occasions. Visitation problems were common at all assessments and moderately stable over time. Residential parents ' perceptions of visitation problems were significantly correlated with concerns about their ex-spouse's parenting abilities shortly after filing for divorce and 3 years later. Also, shortly after filing for divorce, anger/hurt about the divorce uniquely predicted residential parents' reports of visitation problems. Implications for practice are discussed. RESIDENTIAL AND NONRESIDENTIAL PARENTS' PERSPECTIVES ON VISITATION PROBLEMS * Sharlene A. Wolchik, Andrea M. Fenaughty, and Sanford L Braver ; Currently, over one million children in the United States face the transition of parental divorce each year (U.S. Bureau of the Census, 1992; U.S. National Center for Health Statistics, 1991), and it is estimated that over 50% of American children will spend some time in a single-parent home (Bumpass & Sweet, 1989; Furstenberg & Cherlin, 1991). Divorced parents and their children are at risk for a variety of negative outcomes; members of divorced families show greater social and psychological problems and children show greater academic difficulties than those from intact families (Amato & Keith, 1991a, 1991b; Bloom, Asher, & White, 1978). Given the high prevalence of divorce and its potential negative consequences, research focused on understanding the challenges and stressors that occur during this transition in family structure can have important implications for both the design of interventions and the development of public policy. According to a family systems conceptualization of the divorce process, the single most important psychological challenge for former partners involves redefining power and intimacy boundaries (Emery, 1994). For many families, visitation represents the only remaining linkage between the ex-spouses. Thus, it provides a critical arena for redefining power and intimacy boundaries and disentangling ex-spouses' continuing roles as parents from their past roles as spouses (for a fuller discussion of family systems perspectives of divorce, see Arditti & Kelly, 1994; Emery, 1994; Emery & Dillon, 1994). Although many researchers and clinicians view visitation as a significant potential stressor (e.g., Barnum, 1987), there is little research on the extent and nature of visitation difficulties. Most of the research on visitation has focused instead on the relation between visitation and children's adjustment. Although the findings are not entirely consistent, most researchers suggest that children who have frequent, high quality contact with the noncustodial parent have more favorable adjustment than those who have less frequent or poor quality contact (e.g., Balls, Pillow, Wolchik, & Sandler, 1988; Engleman, 1988; Furstenberg, Morgan, & Allison, 1987; Guidubaldi, Perry, Cleminshaw, & McLoughlin, 1983; Hess & Camara, 1979; Hetherington, Cox, & Cox, 1978; Wallerstein & Kelly, 1980a; Wolchik, Sandler, & Braver, 1986). Researchers also have shown that the positive benefits of visitation by nonresidential parents vary as a function of interpersonal and intrapersonal variables such as the quality of the relationship between the spouses (Hetherington, Stanley-Hagen, & Anderson, 1989; Wolchik et al., 1986). Unfortunately, many nonresidential parents eventually cease to play an active role in their children's lives (Furstenberg & Nord, 1985; Furstenberg, Nord, Peterson, & Zill, 1983; Selzter,, 1991; Wallerstein & Kelly, 1980b), although the extent of such disengagement is a matter of some debate (Arditti, 1992; Braver, Wolchik, Sandler, Fogas, & Zvetina, 1991; Braver, Wolchik, et al., 1993). Most children experience a strong sense of loss as contact with their nonresidential parents diminishes (e. …