Home > News
A recent study published in the Journal of Marriage and Family claims that the distance from adolescents and their fathers is greater than the distance between them and their mothers.
The study claims that although research proves that fathers’ involvement with children has increased, mothers still continue to do the majority of the childcare and fathers remain less involved.
Fathers More Distant Than Mothers
“Historically, teens distance themselves from parents and increase involvement with peers,” explains Dr. Alan Booth, the co-author of the study.”Coupled with divorce, this distancing may result in further declines in father-child closeness.”
According to the study, fathers are often the less involved parents in the divorce and would have to increase their overall investment in order to maintain a sense of pre-divorce closeness.
“Therefore, fathers are at a disadvantage in closeness to start, and then divorce makes it even more challenging to be close,” say researchers involved in the study.
Study Details
The team of researchers analyzed results gathered from interviewing high school students who volunteered for the study.
Before their parents go divorced, 71 percent of the participants reported that they were close with their mothers, while 57 percent revealed that they were closest to their fathers.
The youths who reported that they were consistently close with their fathers were the offspring of parents who were still married.
(Source: Science Daily)
Are you considering getting a divorce? Please contact us to receive legal advice and guidance from an experienced divorce attorney.