Treatment with Children of Divorce

Abstract

This treatment study with children of divorce was conducted to compare pretreatment and posttreatment adjustment and knowledge of divorce for children assigned to one of two treatment conditions: a board game therapy that includes divorce information and coping skills training, and a conventional form of play therapy. Participants were 21 children, ages 7 to 17, whose parents have divorced within the last five years. Counselors were male and female doctoral students in counseling psychology at a university in the Southeast. Data collection involved pretreatment and posttreatment assessment using the Children's Depression Inventory (CDI; Kovacs, 1992), the Children's Beliefs About Parental Divorce Scale (CBAPDS; Kurdek & Berg, 1987), the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL; Achen-bach, 1991), the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory for Children (STAIC; Spielberger, 1970), the Piers-Harris Self-Concept Scale for Children (Piers & Harris, 1969), and the Children's Depression Inventory Parent Form (CDI-P; Kazdin, French, Unis & Esveldt-Dawson, 1983). Multivariate analyses revealed a significant pretreatment/posttreatment difference for the parent-report measures, F (4,15) = 8.6, p < .002, and a significant pretreatment/posttreatment difference on the STAIC subscales, F (2,18) = 9.65, p < .002. These significant pretreatment/posttreatment differences suggest better posttreatment adjustment.