Topic: divorce and its impact on children

The Impact of Divorce and Maternal Employment on Pre-Adolescent Children Author(s): Esther Devall, Zolinda Stoneman and Gene Brody Source: Family Relations, Vol. 35, No. 1, The Single Parent Family (Jan., 1986), pp. 153-159 Published by: National Council on Family Relations Stable URL: https://www.jstor.org/stable/584294 Accessed: 25-04-2019 06:24 UTC

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The Impact of Divorce and Maternal

Employment on Pre-adolescent Children

ESTHER DEVALL, ZOLINDA STONEMAN, AND GENE BRODY**

The study compared the responsibilities, activities, peer relations, and self-esteem of 60 boys and girls, ages 9 to 12, whose mothers were divorcedlemployed, mar- ried/employed, or married/nonemployed. Both children and mothers responded to two self-report measures, an adapted version of Schwirian's (1977) questionnaire and the Perceived Competence Scale (Harter, 1982). Children from divorced families did not have more household or childcare responsibilities than other children, but they did assume a confidant role with their mothers more often. They also rated themselves lower in social competence. Maternal employment decreased the children's participation in athletic activities and involvement with friends. The impor- tance of examining perceived differences between family types as well as actual dif- ferences was discussed.

The large number of children who ex- perience divorce and family disruption each year have become a source of concern to many professionals in the family field. Numerous studies have been conducted to document the effects of divorce on children. Early studies tended to focus on effects associated with father absence, but the present trend is to ex- plore the differences in functioning and organization of divorced and intact families (Brandwein, Brown, & Fox, 1974). In a recent review, Blechman (1982) concluded that most of the differences observed in children from single parent homes can be attributed to in- direct factors such as the increased social, emotional, and financial stresses experienced by mothers. The ways in which the family reorganizes to cope with these stressors may have the greatest impact on children (Buehler & Hogan, 1980). More research which focuses

*Presented at the 1983 Annual Meeting of the National Council on Family Relations, St. Paul, MN.

*Esther Devall is a doctoral candidate, Department of Child and Family Development, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602. Zolinda Stoneman and Gene Brody are associate pro- fessors in that same department.

Key Words: divorce, single parent families, maternal employ- ment.

(Family Relations, 1986, 35, 153-159.)

on the social and emotional environment of children reared in single parent families is needed (Pedersen, 1976).

Weiss (1979) suggests that children in single parent families "grow up a little faster" because the family structure necessitates early maturity and responsibility. Weiss described the structure in most intact families as hierarchical, where decisions are generally made by the parents and then handed down to children. This structure often dissolved in single parent families as children became "junior partners" and contributed equally to the functioning of the household.

Single mothers often report difficulty in cop- ing with household responsibilities (Weinraub & Wolf, 1983). In his interviews with single parents, Weiss (1979) found that the increase in children's responsibilities was commonly mentioned as the biggest change resulting from the divorce. This increase in respon- sibilities may result in children who are self- reliant and have high self-esteem. These responsibilities, however, may also lead to children who are overburdened and isolated from their peers. Children may have little time to engage in extracurricular activities or develop friendships. In addition, mothers may rely on children to meet their emotional needs as well as their physical needs (Messinger, Walker, & Freeman, 1978). Children may become overly close to their mothers and feel

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more comfortable interacting with adults than peers.

The first purpose of the study was to com- pare the responsibilities, activities, peer rela- tions, and self-esteem of children from di- vorced and intact families to determine if children in single parent homes are indeed growing up a little faster. In other words, are children from divorced homes assuming more responsibilities and thus participating in fewer activities or interacting less with peers than children from intact families? Single parent families headed by fathers were not included in the study because only about 10% of children from divorced families live with their fathers (U.S. Bureau of the Census, 1976).

The role of maternal employment must also be considered in examining the impact of divorce because most divorced women must work to sustain their families. Approximately 75% of all divorced women are employed, as compared to about 52% of all married women (U.S. Bureau of the Census, 1981). Failure to consider employment as a variable may con- found the results of a study because effects associated with maternal employment may in- correctly be attributed to divorce or father absence. The second purpose of the study, therefore, was to detect differences related to maternal employment rather than marital status.

Maternal employment generally increases the participation in household tasks by chil- dren (Propper, 1972; Woods, 1972). This added responsibility has been found to have positive effects for children (Woods, 1972). Children may see themselves as being a contributing member of the family and may gain increased influence in decision making regarding household tasks (Bahr, 1974).

Employment may affect divorced and intact families differently. Weinraub and Wolf (1983) found that increased employment was related to greater controls and maturity demands by single mothers, but decreased controls by mar- ried mothers. Married mothers may accept the more traditional roles of women as mothers and homemakers and experience more guilt about working outside the home. They may be less likely, then, to place de; )ands and con- trols on their children. Because sin gle mothers must work and there is often no other help available, they may be more likely to require their children to assist with household tasks.

The way maternal employment affects chil- dren may also be moderated by variables such as their gender or age. Boys generally are more negatively affected by their mother's employ- ment than are girls (Gold & Andres, 1978; Hoff- man, 1974). In a recent study, however, boys reported themselves as more positively af- fected by maternal employment than did girls (Trimberger & MacLean, 1982). The girls'

dissatisfaction may have been related to an in- crease in responsibilities following the employment of their mothers. Firstborn children also reported more negative effects than did laterborn children.

Differences were predicted among the three family types in these four areas: (a) responsi- bilities; (b) interaction with peers and involve- ment in extracurricular activities; (c) perceived differences; and (d) self-concept. The hypoth- eses which follow were rendered based on the studies previously reviewed. Regarding responsibilities, it was hypothesized that children with divorced or married, employed mothers would have more household and child- care responsibilities than children with mar- ried, nonemployed mothers. Girls were pre- dicted to assume more responsibilities than boys. In terms of emotional responsibility, chil- dren from divorced homes were expected to act as confidants more often than children from other family types.

In the area of involvement with friends and participation in activities, children with di- vorced mothers were hypothesized to be less involved than children from intact homes. Chil- dren with married, working mothers were ex- pected to be less involved in extracurricular activities but equally involved with friends when compared to children of married, non- working mothers. Boys were predicted to be more involved in sports than girls.

It was believed that perceived differences might be as important as the actual differences reported by the families. Therefore, it was predicted that children from divorced families would perceive themselves as being less well off (more responsibilities and less involvement in activities and with friends) than other chil- dren. However, children with married, em- ployed mothers were expected to compare themselves less favorably only in terms of par- ticipation in outside activities. No gender ef- fects were expected.

Children from divorced homes were pre- dicted to have a lower self-concept in the area of social competence than children from intact homes. No employment effects were expected. Boys were expected to have a higher self- concept than girls in the area of physical com- petence.

Method

Subjects

Sixty mother-child pairs representing three family types participated in the study: (a) 20 di- vorced families with working mothers; (b) 20 intact families with working mothers; and (c) 20 intact families with nonworking mothers. Divorced families with nonworking mothers were not included in the study due to

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their low incidence in the population (U.S. Bureau of the Census, 1981). In the community in which the study was conducted, it was not possible to locate any divorced mothers who did not work at least part-time.

All families were Caucasian and middle- class. The mothers' median level of education was 4 years of college. The majority of mothers were in their early 30s and those who worked had primarily professional positions (e.g., teachers or nurses). Most were satisfied with their job and with their childcare arrangments and would continue to work even if there was no financial necessity for their employment. The majority of the nonworking mothers chose not to work for the sake of their children. The working mothers were currently employed full- time for at least 1 year and the nonworking mothers had not been employed for the last 2 years.

Because employment often requires some type of childcare, working mothers were asked to describe their arrangements for their children during the school year and during the summer. Almost half of the children from divorced families stayed alone during the school year. The mean time spent at home alone was 90 minutes. The married mothers were able to arrange their schedules such that over half of their children were able to stay with them or their spouse. The children who did stay alone did so for a mean time of 60 minutes.

Families indicated their annual income on a checklist that ranged from $0-4,000 to over $56,000. The median income for the divorced families ranged from $11-15,000. Intact families with working mothers reported a median in- come of $20-25,000. The median income of intact families with nonworking mothers was $46-55,000. Because of the disparity in income for the three family types, statistical controls were employed in the data analysis to equate for family income.

The divorced families were identified through court records. The mothers had custody of the children and had been legally divorced at least 1 year. The minimum period since divorce was chosen based on research indicating that reorganization and restabiliza- tion of families usually does not occur until after the first year post-divorce (Hetherington, Cox, & Cox, 1976). The period since divorce in the present study ranged from 12 months to 66 months, with a median of 29 months. Almost three-fourths of the mothers had been em- ployed before the divorce. Of those who had not worked previously, 80% were employed within 1 year following the divorce.

The intact families were recruited from the community and matched with the divorced families by the mother's level of education and the sex and age of the oldest two children.

Families were matched by the oldest two chil- dren because over three-fourths of the di- vorced families were two child families. However, almost half of the intact sample were three child families. The third child was slightly older in the divorced families (3.3 years) than in the intact families (2.6 years). An analysis of covariance with number of children as the covariate was conducted to determine if the difference in family size had a significant im- pact. No such effects were found.

Pre-adolescent children were selected for study because they are considered most at risk for the possible adverse effects of extra responsibilities stemming from divorce or maternal employment (Weiss, 1979). The first- born child ranged in age from 9 to 12 years old, with a median age of 10. The second child ranged in age from 6 to 8 with a median age of 6 1/2, and was at least 2 years younger than the firstborn child. From each family type, 10 children (five boys, five girls) who had a same- sex secondborn sibling and 10 children (five boys, five girls) who had an opposite-sex secondborn sibling participated.

Instruments and Procedure

The researcher administered two self-report measures to families in their homes. Items were read aloud to children to insure com- prehension. Mothers completed their forms in a separate room.

An adapted version of a questionnaire that assessed children's responsibilities, activ- ities, and involvement with peers was used (Schwirian, 1977). Mothers and firstborn chil- dren reported separately on the frequency of the child's participation in household and childcare tasks, extracurricular activities, and interactions with friends.

Household and childcare tasks were chosen as indicators of the child's responsibilities. Household tasks involved taking care of one's self, assisting with meal preparation, cleaning the house, and doing outside work. Childcare responsibilities included babysitting, watch- ing, and taking care of the younger (second- born) sibling. Mothers and children reported on the frequency with which children carried out these responsibilities each week on a 5-point scale ranging from "never" to "almost always."

Because children with many responsibilities may not have time to socialize with their peers, we sought to determine the amount of time spent in extracurricular activities and with friends by children in each family type. Extra- curricular involvement consisted of hours spent each week in sports, music and drama, club activities, and church activities. Involve- ment with friends included both the number of friends and the frequency of visitation with f riends.

In the second section of the instrument,

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mothers and children were each asked to com- pare the child's participation in housework, childcare, outside activities, and involvement with friends to that of the child's peers. A 5-point scale was used that ranged from "a lot less than other children" to "a lot more than other children." Comparison items were in- cluded in the study to determine if perceptions of behavior patterns corresponded to actual reports of behavior. Perceived differences in responsibilities, activities, and peer relation- ships may have as much or even more impact than actual differences.

In the third section of the instrument, mothers and children responded to seven questions developed and piloted by the ex- perimenter to assess how often children assumed a confidant role with their mother. Sample items included questions such as, "How often does your mother tell you things she doesn't tell other people?", and "How often does your mother discuss the bills with you?". The subjects responded on a 5-point scale ranging from "never" to "almost always."

The second instrument, the Perceived Com- petence Scale (PCS), was used to assess children's self-concept (Harter, 1982). The PCS consists of four subscales, three which measure specific competencies and a fourth which measures overall self-worth. The cognitive subscale reflects academic perfor- mance, the social subscale assesses peer rela- tionships, the physical subscale focuses on skill at games and sports, and the general self- worth subscale measures feelings of self- esteem beyond competency in the skill areas.

The 28-item scale uses a structured alternative format to reduce socially desirable responses. Mothers responded to a parallel version of the questionnaire originally designed for teachers.

Results

The data from both children and mothers were analyzed by 2 x 3 (child gender x family type) analyses of variance. In addition, 2 x 3 analyses of covariance with income as a covariate were conducted. The Duncan post hoc procedure, with p < .05, was used to detect differences among group means.

Effects due to Family Type

Main effects for family type were found for the children's report of outside chores, visita- tion with their friends, comparison of involve- ment in activities, assumption of the confidant role, and social competence. The F ratios and means for the children's data are presented in Table 1. Main effects were also found for mothers' childcare comparison (F[2,54] = 4.54, p < .05) and confidant scores (F[2,54] = 3.40, p < .05).

Contrary to our predictions, children from divorced families did not have more respon- sibilities or engage in fewer activities than other children. In fact, they reported less responsibility for outside chores than children from intact families. Even though they did not report less participation in activities than other children they still perceived themselves as less involved. Children from intact homes perceived their level of involvement as equal to that of other children. As predicted, children from di-

Table 1. F Ratios and Means for Family Type Effects Found for Children's Responses

Divorced/ Married! Married! Subscale F Working Working Nonworking Responsibilities Personal N.S. 8.05 7.35 7.30 Meal N.S. 19.80 20.70 21.10 Cleaning N.S. 20.75 21.35 18.35 Outside work 5.49** 6.90 9.45 9.65 Childcare N.S. 6.15 7.40 7.55

Peer Relations Number of friends N.S. 6.40 5.60 6.55 Frequency of visits 3.03* 5.55 6.25 6.90

Relation with mother Conf idant 3.63 * 19.55 16.85 16.55

Perceived Differences Tasks N.S. 2.95 3.00 2.55 Childcare N.S. 2.80 3.15 3.50 Friends N.S. 3.15 2.95 3.35 Activities 3.85* 2.60 3.25 3.40

Competence Cognitive N.S. 20.35 20.70 20.65 Social 3.33* 20.25 22.15 23.10 Physical N.S. 19.00 19.75 20.10 General N.S. 19.55 21.05 21.45

n = 20 for each group. *P < .05.; *F*p < .01.

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vorced homes reported fewer visits with friends and lower social competence than children from intact families.

One major difference between the family types was the frequency with which children acted as confidants. Children with divorced mothers reported acting as confidants more often than children with married mothers. The divorced mothers (M = 20.67) also reported that their children acted as confidants more than the married mothers (M working = 18.92; M nonworking = 18.67).

For divorced mothers, perceived differences were more significant than actual differences. Although there was no difference in the amount of childcare married and divorced mothers reported their children were responsi- ble for, divorced mothers (M = 3.35) perceived that their children had more responsibilities than their peers. Married mothers (M working = 2.85; M nonworking = 2.80) reported that their children had less childcare respon- sibilities than other children.

When the data were equated for income, the scores for children's outside chores and assumption of the confidant role remained significant. All effects found for mothers re- mained significant.

Employment Effects

For children, main effects related to mater- nal employment were found for participation in sports (F[2,54] = 3.08, p < .05). A disordinal in- teraction was found for the comparison of in- volvement with friends (F[2,54] = 3.95, p < .05). For mothers, main effects associated with maternal employment were found for the number of friends (F[2.54] = 5.06, p < .01), comparison of participation in activities (F[2,54] = 3.12, p < .05), and comparison of in- volvement with friends (F[2,54] = 3.43, p < .05).

The only activity affected by maternal employment was participation in sports. Children of nonemployed mothers (M = 4.10) spent more time engaging in athletics than children of employed mothers (M married = 2.80; M divorced = 3.00).

An interesting pattern of results was found for the impact of maternal employment on chil- dren's perception of their involvement with friends. As indicated by previous studies, boys were more affected by maternal employment than girls. Boys with working mothers rated their involvement with friends as less than other children (M divorced/working = 2.8; M married/working = 2.6) but boys with non- working mothers rated their involvement as the same as other children (M = 3.7). Girls reported a level of involvement similar to their peers in all three family types (M di- vorced/working = 3.5; M married/working = 3.3; M married/nonworking = 3.0).

Mothers reported that their employment

adversely affected the friendships and ac- tivities of their children. The number of friends reported was less for the children of employed mothers (M married = 6.0; M divorced = 5.9) than nonemployed mothers (M = 7.65). Work- ing mothers also perceived that their children were less involved in activities (M divorced = 2.6; M married = 2.95) and with friends (M di- vorced = 2.52; M married = 2.70) than other children. Nonemployed mothers, however, per- ceived that their children were as involved in activities (M = 3.45) and with friends (M = 3.15) as other children.

The friends comparison score for children remained significant after the ANCOVAs were performed. None of the effects found for mothers were significant after the data were equated for income.

Gender Effects

For children, gender main effects were found for personal care responsibilities, out- side chores, participation in sports, and physical competence. For mothers, gender main effects were found for personal care responsibilities, meal preparation, cleaning, outside chores, helping with siblings, and par- ticipation in sports. The F ratios and means for both children and mothers are presented in Table 2.

Both family members reported that girls had more personal care responsibilities than boys, and that boys had more outside chores than girls. Additionally, mothers reported that girls had more responsibility than boys for meals, cleaning, and childcare. Children and mothers also reported that boys spent more time in sports activities than girls. All gender effects remained significant after the ANCOVAs were performed.

Discussion and Implications

The belief that children in single parent families grow up a little faster was only partial- ly substantiated. Children whose mothers are divorced or employed did not have more house- hold or childcare responsibilities than other children. Indeed, the children from divorced homes had less outside chores than the other children because they tended to live in rental properties where the landlord was responsible for yard upkeep.

The fact that almost half of the children in the divorced group were "latchkey kids" may account for the lack of differences found for household and childcare responsibilities. Mothers may have felt that asking children to care for themselves for over an hour was enough of a responsibility. Since their younger sibling typically was in daycare or an organized program during this time, the children from divorced families had less opportunity to help with childcare.

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Table 2. F Ratios and Means for Gender Main Effects

Children Mothers

Measure F Boys Girls F Boys Girls Responsibilities Personal 6.06* 6.90 8.28 5.05* 7.27 8.30 Meal N.S. 20.23 20.83 4.91* 18.27 20.33 Cleaning N.S. 20.07 20.23 4.16* 18.03 20.27 Outside work 13.08** 10.03 7.30 9.90** 9.00 6.73 Childcare N.S. 7.13 6.93 4.73* 6.27 7.23

Activities Sports 16.43** 4.23 2.37 34.27** 4.77 2.20 Musical N.S. 3.33 3.77 N.S. 3.63 3.50 Clubs N.S. 3.30 3.27 N.S. 3.13 3.03 Church N.S. 1.63 1.63 N.S. 2.33 2.43

Competence Cognitive N.S. 20.33 20.80 N.S. 24.80 24.73 Social N.S. 21.87 21.80 N.S. 23.37 25.00 Physical 10.34** 21.20 18.03 N.S. 21.87 20.33 General N.S. 21.10 20.27 N.S. 23.97 25.10

n = 30 for each group. *p < .05; **p < .01.

Although children from divorced families did not report more household or childcare respon- sibilities than other children, they may indeed have more emotional responsibility. The divorced mothers and their children were more likely to have a confidant relationship than were the married mothers and their children. In this way, children from single parent families may grow up faster. Further research is needed to determine the long-term effects of such a relationship for children. Some of the difficulty encountered by single parents when they remarry may stem from children's anger at sharing or losing their role as confidant (Walker & Messinger, 1979).

The importance of testing for effects associated with maternal employment was supported by the study. Children with nonemployed mothers participated in more athletic activities and, at least according to mothers, have more friends than children with employed mothers. Employed mothers may be less available to chauffeur children to activities that require a large time commitment, such as soccer or baseball. Being involved in fewer ac- tivities may also impact on the number of friendships children form.

It is possible that more negative effects associated with maternal employment may have been found if the study had included more families in which the mother had not worked prior to the divorce, or mothers who were dissatisfied with their jobs and childcare arrangements. In the present study, about three-fourths of the divorced mothers had worked before the divorce and most of the employed mothers were satisfied with their jobs and childcare arrangements.

Perceptions proved to be as important as ac- tual differences between the family types.

When asked to compare their children's in- volvement in activities to that of other children, employed mothers accurately assessed their child's involvement as less than that of the child's peers. However, only children with divorced mothers perceived their participation as less. Children with married, employed mothers did not perceive any difference in their participation and that of their peers, even though their participation was less than that of children with married, nonworking mothers. Children in single parent families may not realize their lower level of involvement could be due to maternal employment.

Employed mothers also described their children's involvement with friends as less than that of other children. However, only boys with working mothers perceived their involve- ment as less. Girls with employed mothers rated their involvement as similar to that of their peers. At this age, girls may be satisfied in maintaining contact with one or two close friends, but boys may feel deprived if they can- not be part of a group or team (Berndt, 1981). Because boys with employed mothers par- ticipated less in sports activities, they may have had less opportunity to associate with a group of boys.

Many of the disadvantages reported by children from divorced homes in interacting with peers (such as amount of visitation with friends or feelings of social competence) were a result of income differences rather than fami- ly type differences. It is noteworthy that in- come still had an effect, even with a select sample of well educated mothers and a relatively small family size.

Gender appeared to be more salient than family type or employment status in deter- mining the children's responsibilities. Chores

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were assigned along stereotypic lines. Girls were more likely to be expected to care for themselves by making their bed or cleaning their room while boys were expected to help with outside work like raking or cleaning the garage. Mothers also reported that girls were more likely to help with meal preparation, cleaning, and childcare.

Gender was also a determinant of children's involvement in extracurricular activities. Boys participated more in athletic activities than girls. Not surprisingly, boys rated themselves higher in physical competence. The absence of a father in the home did not seem to adversely affect boys' participation in sports or their feel- ing of physical competence.

Several implications can be drawn from this study. First, the study supports policies which provide assistance to single parent families, both in terms of economic support and child- care provisions. The growing phenomena of latchkey kids suggest the need for readily available, inexpensive childcare for school aged children. Second, those who work with single parents and their children need to guard against preconceived ideas about how divorce affects families. Although this study may not generalize to larger families headed by poorly educated women, the families in our sample appeared to be coping effectively with the changes in their lives. A third implication is ap- plicable to those who work with stepfamilies as well as with single parent families. The con- fidant relationship divorced mothers shared with their children in this study may place an undue responsibility on children. Divorced mothers may need help with role renegotiation when they remarry because the failure to realign roles and achieve a new structure can make the development of symptoms in step-

families more likely (Keshet, 1980). A final im- plication is the need to address both percep- tions and realities about life in single parent families. Practitioners may need to develop in- terventions to help divorced families deal with feelings about supposed differences, instead of focusing only on strategies to manage their responsibilities and time more effectively.

The effects of maternal employment and the impact of perceived differences must be con- sidered in understanding the benefits and drawbacks of growing up in a single parent family. Clearly, we cannot understand the social and emotional environment of children in divorced families simply by comparing them with intact families in which the mother is not

employed or by examining actual differences without regard to the reality of perceived dif- ferences.

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