Hope, Stress, and Post-Divorce Child Adjustment: Development and Evaluation of the Oklahoma Co-Parenting for Resilience Program

Children of divorce are at increased risk for conduct problems, emotional problems, lower academic performance, social problems (Amato, 2014), and are twice as likely to experience a serious psychiatric disorder, commit or attempt suicide, or develop an alcohol addiction (Brown, 1998). Similarly, divorcing adults experience significant psychological distress and are at increased risk for tobacco and alcohol use, committing suicide, and having health issues (Amato, 2014; ChildStats.gov 2013; Schoenborn, 2004; Kposowa, 2000). To foster post-divorce adjustment for children, the majority of U.S. courts require divorcing parents to participate in a co-parenting class before finalizing their divorce (Mulroy et al., 2013). Despite wide spread adoption, the vast majority of co-parenting classes have either not been evaluated or have substantial methodological weaknesses in their evaluations (Fackrell, et al., 2011). The present study assesses the effectiveness of the Co-Parenting for Resilience (CPR) divorce education program.

Specifically, we examine whether CPR affects divorcing parents reports of hope (HHI; Herth, 1991), perceived stress (PSS; Cohen et al., 1988), positive parenting (APQ-9; Elgar, et al., 2007), and child adjustment (SDQ; Goodman, 2001) on a sample of 248 adults (n=124 treatment and n=124 control) across two time points (baseline and 12-month follow-up). Mean age was 35, 61% were female, annual income was $33,000, and education level was some college.

A within group design assessed for change over time in the CPR group using a series of paired t-tests, and a between group design compared the treatment group to a control group using a series of ANCOVAs controlling for gender, income, education, and who initiated the divorce. Results from paired t-tests indicate that CPR parents reported significant increases in hope, child adjustment, and decreases in stress from baseline to 12-month follow-up. Similarly, ANCOVAs found the CPR group reported increases in hope, positive parenting, and child adjustment, and decreases in stress compared to the control group after accounting for controls.

These findings provide support for CPR as being instrumental in helping divorcing parents move toward more adaptive coping strategies that benefit child well-being. Results suggest that increasing hope may also be an effective strategy for prevention programs working with high-risk families. By increasing hope and reducing the stress associated with divorce and separation, parents may utilize more adaptive coping strategies that promote resilience. Overall, the present evaluation study provides rigorous initial evidence that CPR holds potential to prevent many of the negative outcomes associated with divorce for parents and children.