Abstract
M.A.
South Africa has an exceptionally high divorce rate. The stressful nature of
parental separation and divorce results in higher susceptibility of children to
psychological, social, academical and health problems. Parental ability to
deal with the divorce transition largely influences the long term adjustment of
children after divorce. An effective empirically researched based parentfocused
educational programme which addresses the most essential divorce
related issues and the effects thereof on children, can be of exceptional value.
Supplying parents with sufficient knowledge and information regarding divorce
as a process, as well as the way it effects children of different ages en
developmental stages, will assist the parents in making better choices
concerning the children. By educating parents about the effect of prolonged
interparental conflict on children and by supplying them with constructive
conflict management skills, the negative consequences of divorce on children
may be minimised or even eliminated.
In this study an educational programme (k.i.d.s.) was assessed by using a
one group pretest- postest design. K.i.d.s. is a short, informative and user
friendly educational programme. It comprises two, two hour sessions,
scheduled two weeks apart. Statistical significance was achieved when
pretest-posttest results were compared regarding knowledge on conflict and
the divorce process. Participants also reported a significant decline regarding
negative conflict behaviour. An overall high level of consumer satisfaction
with the program was reported.
Despite the small study sample, the positive results of this study proves the
k.i.d.s. program to be a potential promising preventative and intervention
method for use with divorcing parents.