Based on Research Conducted at OSLC
Two studies of the factors that contribute to marital and child adjustment following marital separation.
Project Overview
The Oregon Divorce Studies (ODS) have involved two separate studies of the factors that contribute to marital and child adjustment following marital separation (ODS-I and ODS-II). In both studies, we have evaluated adjustment processes several ways: interviews and questionnaires with mothers and children, questionnaires from teachers, and observations of interactions between mothers and children. Mothers also invited an adult support person to participate. The work began with a longitudinal study in 1984 (ODS-I) with a group of 197 separated mothers and their elementary-school-aged children. The findings from ODS-I were used to design a program to help mothers and children adjust to divorce. The resulting preventive intervention program was applied in ODS-II.
ODS-II began in 1992 with a new group of 238 separated mothers and their children. Families were assigned randomly to experimental or control conditions to evaluate the efficacy of an intervention program designed to prevent and reduce problems for mothers and children. Mothers in the experimental group participated in information groups that taught effective parenting practices and strategies for personal development. Families in the control condition participated in the same assessment procedures but did not receive the intervention. Multiple-method assessments were conducted five times over the course of 3 years. We then followed the experiences of the ODS-II families annually for another four years, during a period when the youngsters were transitioning to middle school and high school.
Funder: National Institute of Mental Health