Socio-genealogical connectedness: on the role of gender and same-gender parenting in mitigating the effects of parental divorce

Abstract

Guided by the idea of socio-genealogical connectedness (i.e. knowledge, and belief in, one’s biological and social roots), the present study explored the relationship between a number of the characteristics of lone-parent families and the well-being of children in these families. Since it is well established that develop-mental difficulties do not emerge in all children of divorced/separated families, there is a need to understand those factors which mitigate against the adverse influences of divorce on children. Evidence suggests that socio-genealogical connectedness is one of the possible mitigating factors. However, the present study, which involved a variety of multivariate statistical techniques, indicates academic attainment to be the most important mitigating factor. This implies that children with greater intellectual resources to deal with problems are less vulnerable than others to the long-term effects of divorce and separation. Nonetheless, the results support the hypothesis derived from the concept of socio-genealogical connectedness; it was the second most important predictor.