Identifying psychological reactions of boys to parental divorce: A qualitative study

Introduction: Increasing divorce rates have important implications for children. The causal relationship between parental divorce and mental health of children is not simple and there are different patterns for the response of children to parental divorce. The examination of gender as a possible mediator in the adaptation of children to divorce has, in some cases, rendered contradictory results. The aim of this study was to identify the psychological reactions of boys to parental divorce in a qualitative study. Method: The present study is qualitative in nature. The study population consisted of boys who had experienced parental divorce in Shahriar County, Iran. Subjects were selected using purposive sampling method. In-depth interviews were conducted with a total of ۱۳ boys of ۱۲-۱۷ years of age from families who had experienced separation ۱-۵ years prior to the time of the interviews and lived with their mothers. Marshall and Rossman’s reduction and interpretation method was used for data analysis. Data reduction and interpretation method involves the sorting of data into categories and coding them. Results: The ۲ main themes of emotional reactions and behavioral reactions were achieved through data analysis. The subcategories of emotional reactions include a sense of relief, sadness, anger, and mixed reaction and the subcategories of behavioral reactions included maturity, academic performance, and behavior problems. Conclusion: This study showed that the processes of divorce and separation are not experienced homogeneously by all children. The effects of divorce can be positive, negative, or a mix of the two. It however seems reasonable for one to conclude that the negative impact of divorce on boys can be extensive. This illustrates children’s different perceptions of divorce and its related processes that lead to the different response patterns in boys to divorce.

کلیدواژه ها:

Sons of divorce ، Psychological reaction ، Emotional reactions ، Behavioral reactions