 children have highlighted the following points:
- The relative well-being of children in bereaved families and the poorer outcomes identified among children in step-families suggest that the absence of a parent figure is not the most influential feature of separation for children's development.
- The age at which children experience their parents' separation does not, in itself, appear important.
- The popular view that boys are more adversely affected by parental separation than girls is not supported by consistent evidence. It is possible that girls and boys exhibit distress in different ways.
- Financial hardship and other socio-economic circumstances, before as well as after separation, play an influential role in limiting children's educational achievements. They appear less important where other outcomes, such as mental health, are concerned.
- Family conflict before, during and after separation is stressful for children, who may respond by becoming anxious, aggressive or withdrawn. Conflict appears to be an important influence in a number of adverse outcomes, including behavioural problems.
- The ability of parents to recover from the psychological distress associated with their separation is important for children's own ability to adjust. Parental distress is influenced by factors such as social and economic well-being and the presence or absence of conflict. In turn, it affects parent-child relationships and thereby influences outcomes for children.
- Multiple changes in family structure - experiencing the breakdown of two or more parental relationships, for example - appear to have an especially detrimental impact on children, either in themselves or because of associated adversity. The likelihood of multiple changes will, inevitably, be greatest for children who are young when their birth parents separate.
- Continuing contact with the non-resident parent may benefit children's adjustment following separation, but there is no simple relationship with frequency of contact. It is the quality of contact, rather than quantity, that appears important.
A major strength of British studies concerned with the welfare of children whose parents separate has been the use of large-scale longitudinal cohort studies to analyse long-term outcomes. This provides a firm basis for further research. Future studies should, however, avoid the tendency to treat parental separation as if it were an event, rather than a process where circumstances before, during and after can exert a critical influence on some children.
Another current area of weakness is the shortage of studies concerned with the more immediate impact of separation and the role of underlying factors, such as family conflict. Greater understanding of the way that short-term distress relates to longer-term outcomes is essential.
There is also a lack of research into the part that family support initiatives and other interventions might play in reducing the risks of adversity for children whose parents separate.
More needs to be learned about the extent of multiple family transitions and their impact on children.
Policy and practice implications
Although there are deficiencies in current knowledge about children and parental separation, it would be unreasonable to delay improvements to the support offered to families until the research gaps (see box above) have been filled. A number of policy and practice implications can be drawn, with caution, from the existing research findings:
- Some children and parents need professional support at the time of separation. Help for parents in dealing with their distress will assist them in supporting their children through the transition from one household structure to another. The availability of support services should be made known to parents going through separation.
- Support cannot be provided by specialist services alone. Parents are most likely to seek advice from GPs, teachers and family lawyers, who are often ill-equipped to help. Information and training for these groups may enable them to deal with families who do not 