This Article Full Text (PDF) All Versions of this Article: 0192513X07308042v1 29/6/707    most recent References Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Citation Map Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in ISI Web of Science Alert me to new issues of the journal Add to Saved Citations Download to citation manager Request Permissions Request Reprints Add to My Marked Citations Google Scholar Articles by Cashmore, J. Articles by Taylor, A. Social Bookmarking                   What's this?

Overnight Stays and Children's Relationships With Resident and Nonresident Parents After Divorce

University of Sydney, Australia, J.Cashmore{at}usyd.edu.au

Patrick Parkinson

University of Sydney, Australia

Alan Taylor

Macquarie University, Sydney, Australia

This study focuses on adolescents' overnight contact with their nonresident parents. Sixty young people ages 12 to 19 and their resident parents were interviewed as part of a nationally representative study in Australia. The likelihood of overnight stays was lower when there was conflict and lack of trust between the parents. Adolescents who stayed overnight with their nonresident parents reported greater closeness and better quality relationships with their nonresident parents than did those who had daytime-only contact, an association that remained significant after taking account of the overall frequency of contact and the level of conflict between the parents (as reported by the resident parent and the child). The findings suggest that overnight stays may both reflect and change the nature of the relationship between children and their nonresident parents, with no apparent downside in this regard for the relationship between children and their resident parents.

Key Words: parental separation • overnight stays • nonresident parent • parent—child relationships • adolescents

CiteULike    Connotea    Del.icio.us    Digg    Reddit    Technorati    What's this?