Aim To determine an impact of parental divorce to depression and intimate relationships of young people during adolescence, and prevalence of symptoms of depression and the level of intimacy in relations to adolescents living in intact families and those from divorced families. Methods This prospective descriptive research was conducted on a sample of 168 examinees of which 64 (38.1%) were students of the University Zenica, and 104 (61.9%) high students schools from Zenica and Maglaj cities during May and June 2011. Beck’s Depression Inventory (BDI) II, Miller Social Intimacy Scale and sociodemographic questionnaire were used. Results Adolescents from divorced families had statistically significantly higher level of depression (p<0.05), with moderate and severe depression found in 20 (24.69%) adolescents from divorced families as compared with six (6.89%) adolescents from intact families. An analysis of BDI-II scale showed that adolescents from divorced families had statistically significant difference in agitation (p< 0.01), difficult concentration, suicidal thoughts, grief and pessimism (p<0.05). Conclusion It is necessary to carry out detailed studies on longterm effects of breakup of families due to divorce, which have negative implications on psychological and social functioning of adolescents and the development of their identity and closeness in intimate relationships, with a legislative introduction of premarital and marriage counseling for parents in the conflict.
Wallerstein J. Growing up in the divorced family. Clinical Social Work. 2006. p. 401–17.
2.
Richardson S, Mccabe M. Parental divorce during adolescence and adjustment in aarly adulthood. Adolescence. 2001. p. 467–89.
3.
Amato P. Children of divorce in the 1990s: an update of the Amato and Keith (1991) meta-analysis. J Fam Psychol. 2001. p. 355–70.
4.
Fagan P, Rector R. The effects of divorce on America. The Herritage Foundation. 2000.
5.
Størksen I, Roysamb E, Holmen T, Tambs K. Adolescent adjustment and well-being: effects of parental divorce and distress. Scand J Psychol. 2006. p. 75–84.
6.
Donald M, Dower J, Correa-Velez I, Jones M. Risk and protective factors for medically serious suicide attempts: a comparison of hospital-based with population-based samples of young adults. Aust N Z J Psychiatry. 2006. p. 87–96.
7.
Crawford T, Cohen P, Midlarsky E, Brook J. Internalizing symptoms in adolescents: gender differences in vulnerability to parental distress and discord. J Res Adolesc. 2001. p. 95–118.
8.
Winstock Z, Sherer M, Enosh G. The effect of divorce on personal and familial images: the adolescent’s perspective. J Child Custody. 2004. p. 19–35.
9.
Beck A, Steer R, Brown G. Manual for the Beck Depression Inventory-II. Psychological Corporation; 1996.
10.
Miller R, Lefcourt H. The assessment of social intimacy. J Pers Assess. 1982. p. 514–8.
11.
Hook M, Gerstein L, Detterich L, Gridley B. How close are we? Measuring intimacy and examining gender differences. J Couns Dev. 2003. p. 462–72.
12.
Strohschein L. Parental divorce and child mental health trajectories. J Marriage Fam. 2005. p. 1286.
13.
Amato P. The impact of family formation change on the cognitive, social, and emotional well-being of the next generation. Future Child. 2005. p. 75–96.
14.
Twenge J, Nolen-Hoeksema S. Age, gender, race, socioeconomic status, and birth cohort differences on the Children’s Depression Inventory: a metaanalysis. J Abnorm Psychol. 2002. p. 578–88.
15.
Peterson A, Sarigiani P, Kennedy R. Adolescent depression: Why more girls? J Youth Adolesc. 1991. p. 247–71.
16.
Mackay R. The impact of family structure and family change on child outcomes: a personal reading of the research literature. Social Policy J N Z. 2005. p. 111–33.
17.
Kirk A. The effects of divorce on young adults’ relationship competence: the influence of intimate friendships. J Divorce Remarriage. 2002. p. 61–89.
18.
Jones G, Dembo M. Age and sex role differences in intimate friendships during childhood and adolescence. Merrill-Palmer Q. 1989. p. 445–62.
19.
Sinclair S, Nelson E. The impact of parental divorce on college students’ intimate relationships and relational beliefs. J Divorce Remarriage. 1998. p. 103–29.
20.
Guttmann J, Rosenberg M. Emotional intimacy and children’s adjustment: A comparison between single-parent divorced and intact families. Educational Psychology. 2003. p. 457–72.
21.
Flowerdew J, Neale. Trying to stay apace: children with multiple challenges in their post-divorce family lives. Childhood. 2003. p. 147–61.
22.
Bradbury T, Karney B. Understanding and altering the longitudinal course of marriage. J Marriage Fam. 2004. p. 862–79.
23.
Finger B, Eiden R, Edwards E, Leonard K, Kachadourian L. Marital aggression and child peer competence: A comparison of three conceptual models. Personal Relationships. 2010. p. 357–76.
24.
Benson M, Buehler C, Gerard J. Interparental hostility and early adolescent problem behavior spillover via maternal acceptance, harshness, inconsistency, and intrusiveness. J Early Adolesc. 2008. p. 428–54.
25.
Cui M, Fincham F. The differential effects of parental divorce and marital conflict on young adult romantic relationships. Personal Relationships. 2010. p. 331–43.
The statements, opinions and data contained in the journal are solely those of the individual authors and contributors and not of the publisher and the editor(s). We stay neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.
