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. 2019 Sep;33(6):690-703.
doi: 10.1037/fam0000556. Epub 2019 Jul 18.

Parenting time, parenting quality, interparental conflict, and mental health problems of children in high-conflict divorce

Karey L O'Hara  1 , Irwin N Sandler  1 , Sharlene A Wolchik  1 , Jenn-Yun Tein  1 , C Aubrey Rhodes  1
Affiliations

Parenting time, parenting quality, interparental conflict, and mental health problems of children in high-conflict divorce

Karey L O'Hara et al. J Fam Psychol. 2019 Sep.

Erratum in

Abstract

Despite widespread acknowledgment that "frequent, continuing, and meaningful" (Pruett & DiFonzo, 2014) time with both parents is beneficial for children from divorced or separated families, and that interparental conflict (IPC) is associated with increased child mental health problems, the joint effects of parenting time (PT), parenting quality (PQ), and IPC on children's mental health problems are less clear. The current study integrates two theoretical models in multiple mediator analyses to test indirect effects of mothers' and fathers' PQ and IPC to explain the association between PT and children's mental health problems within the same model. Participants were children aged 9-18 years (N = 141) who had one or both parents participate in a randomized comparative effectiveness trial of a court-based prevention program for high-conflict divorcing or separating families. Data were collected at pretest and 9-month follow-up. Analyses revealed an indirect effect in which fathers' PQ mediated the association between PT and child internalizing problems both concurrently and 9 months later. There were no significant indirect effects involving IPC. Analyses indicated a significant quadratic relation between PT and fathers' PQ, suggesting that although more PT is associated with better father-child relationships, there is a point beyond which more time is not related to a better relationship. We discuss the study findings, research limitations, and implications for public policy. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2019 APA, all rights reserved).

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Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
Conceptual Model.
Figure 2.
Figure 2.
Model fit statistics and standardized regression coefficients of mediation path model of T1 FPT to T1 mediators PQ-mother, PQ-father, and conflict on self-reported child adjustment problems at T1 (Panel A) and T2 (Panel B). Covariates include child age, child gender, and program condition (class).
Figure 3.
Figure 3.
Association between Time 1 (T1) father parenting time (FPT) and predicted scores on T1 parenting quality (PQ)-mother and T1 PQ-father.
Figure 4.
Figure 4.
Model fit statistics and standardized regression coefficients of mediation path model of T1 FPT to T1 mediators PQ-mother, PQ-father, and conflict on parent-reported child mental health problems at T1 (panel A) and Time 2 (T2; panel B). Covariates include child age, child gender, and program condition (class). BPI = Behavior Problems Index; INT = internalizing problems subscale; EXT = externalizing problems subscale.
Figure 5.
Figure 5.
Association between Time 1 (T1) father parenting time (FPT) and predicted scores on parent-reported child internalizing (INT) and externalizing (EXT) problems, respectively. BPI = Behavior Problems Index.
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