Attitudes of Young Adolescents Toward Marriage,Divorce,and Children of Divorce

Abstract

Do children of divorce have negative attitudes toward marriage? The purpose of this study was to compare the attitudes of thirteenand fourteen-year-old early adolescents from intact homes with those of early adolescents of divorce toward marriage, divorce, and children of divorce. A Likert-type scale was administered to 234 eighth grade students. Data were analyzed with two-way analyses of variance (sex by parental marital status). As a whole, the responses were positive on all three measures of attitude, with early adolescents from intact homes exhibiting significantly more positive attitudes than early adolescents of divorce. Respondents indicated that the "child of divorce" status brought about behavioral changes. Further research is needed to explore the nature of these differences.

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