The detrimental effects of parental break-up on children's mental health are well-documented. However, research has also shown that children living in joint physical custody (JPC) arrangements often fare better than children living in sole physical custody (SPC) arrangements. Thus, the question arises: What are the differences between JPC and SPC that account for those results? Drawing on data from the Family Models in Germany (FAMOD) study conducted in 2019, structural equation models (SEM) were estimated to deduct the mediating role of coparenting support in children's mental health in 465 JPC and 652 SPC families with children aged 2-14.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFWe examine whether complex cross-household structures of post-separation families are associated with higher risk-taking behavior in adolescence (substance use, bullying, early sexual onset) and whether the proportion, and thus statistical normality, of complex family types in a certain country is a potential moderator of this association. Drawing on representative data from 42 countries and regions from the Health Behavior in School-aged Children (HBSC) study in 2001, 2006, and 2010 ( = 506,977), we provide detailed analyses on adolescent risk behavior even for very rare family types, thereby accounting for the complex cross-household structure present in many post-separation families. We combine logistic and count regression models to analyze risk incidence and intensity.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFJoint physical custody (JPC), a parental care arrangement in which children live with each parent about equally after separation or divorce, is an increasingly common phenomenon in many countries. This is a major shift away from the standard of sole physical custody (SPC), in which children live primarily with one parent (usually their mother) after family dissolution. Although attention to JPC by social scientists is growing, and the effects of this arrangement on children's well-being are the subject of highly ideological debates, there is currently little empirical evidence with statistical power on JPC.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFJoint physical custody, a parental care arrangement in which a child lives with each parent about equally after separation or divorce, is an increasingly common phenomenon in many Western countries. Although attention from family scholars, practitioners, and law professionals is growing, there are hardly any numbers on the prevalence of joint physical custody (JPC). Moreover, studies using large-scale representative data on the effects of JPC for children's well-being are still rare.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFJ Gerontol B Psychol Sci Soc Sci
March 2020
Objectives: Using high-quality data from Germany, this study aims to contribute to the yet little knowledge about possible changes in adult parent-child relationships within countries over time.
Method: Analyzing 13,106 interviews from four rounds of the German Ageing Survey (DEAS), covering the period 1996-2014, we monitor stability and change in four dimensions of adult parent-child relationships, namely geographic proximity, frequency of contact, emotional closeness, and exchange of support.
Results: We observed a continuous decrease in parent-child geographic proximity between 1996 and 2008, but no further increase in distance thereafter.
Few studies have yet investigated how intergenerational solidarity between parents and adult children is associated with intragenerational relations between siblings. Theoretically, one might expect compensation between inter- and intragenerational relationship solidarity as well as spillover effects from parent-child solidarity to sibling solidarity. Using data from the German Family Panel (pairfam), this study analyzes 5410 interviews with young adults who provided detailed information on the relationships to their parents and up to four siblings.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFJoint physical custody (JPC), a parental care arrangement in which a child lives with each parent for at least 25-50% of the time after separation or divorce, is increasingly common in many Western societies. This is a major shift from the standard of sole physical custody, with mostly mothers providing primary childcare after a parental separation or divorce. The increasing share of separated or divorced parents who practice JPC, which in some countries, US states, and regions reaches 30% and more, results from increasing gender equality due to mothers participating considerably in the labor force and fathers being actively involved in their children's daily lives.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFJ Gerontol B Psychol Sci Soc Sci
September 2016
Objectives: Our study examines cross-national variations in intergenerational relations of partnered parents aged 50 and older with adult non-coresident children by family structure (intact vs stepfamilies) and parent-child relationship type (biological tie vs steprelation). We focus on three European countries-France, Germany, and Russia-which have in common a relatively large proportion of stepfamilies, but differ with regard to contextual characteristics potentially impacting the stepfamily-intergenerational-relations nexus.
Method: The analysis is based on data from the Generations and Gender Survey (Wave 1).