Adolescents’ Post-Divorce Sense of Belonging

Abstract

Abstract. A considerable number of children face the divorce or separation of their parents globally every year. As parental divorce is often accompanied by changes in the home and social environment of adolescents, they may experience a diminished sense of belonging to one or multiple social contexts, such as the family, school, peer group, or neighborhood, which can, in turn, influence their post-divorce adjustment. To gain insight into the mechanisms and conditions that affect adolescents’ sense of belonging following parental divorce, we have reviewed empirical research from multiple disciplines from a bio-ecological perspective. This review has shown that adolescents’ sense of belonging can be an important protective factor after parental divorce, and is affected by processes at the micro-, meso-, exo-, and macrolevel. However, extensive knowledge on the determinants and mechanisms that affect adolescents’ belonging in the context of divorce remains lacking. Recommendations for future research are given, as a more thorough understanding of the factors that promote the belonging of adolescents in divorced families can be an important next step in promoting a higher quality of life for adolescents after parental divorce.

The Role of Sense of Belonging and Family Structure in Adolescent Adjustment

“…When they grow up in divorced families, it may be particularly challenging to fulfill this need, as a parental divorce is typically accompanied by a range of transitions in both the family system and their direct social environment. Continuing the work of past studies (Jose et al, 2012;Reja€ an et al, 2021;Witherspoon et al, 2009), the present study adopted an ecological perspective and examined effects of belonging to multiple contexts. Possible differences were examined between the sense of belonging to family, peer group, school, and neighborhood of adolescents from intact versus divorced families, and how this relates to their adjustment.…”

“…Particularly during adolescence, when social relationships outside the family become increasingly important and youngsters preferably develop a balance between autonomy and relatedness in relationships, a strong sense of belonging is key for positive adjustment (Baumeister, Brewer, Tice, & Twenge, 2007;Jose, Ryan, & Pryor, 2012). As adolescents are embedded within multiple social contexts that jointly influence adolescent development (Bronfenbrenner, 1979), belongingness should be understood through a broader ecological lens, including the family, peer group, school, and neighborhood (Reja€ an et al, 2021). Within the family system, belonging refers to feeling included within the entire household, of being understood, having fun together, wanting to spend time together, and being paid attention to (Goodenow, 1992;Leake, 2007).…”

Adolescents' belonging in post‐divorce families: Examining residential and digital contact with mothers and fathers

“…For adolescents growing up in divorced or separated families, family belongingness can be threatened. Studies indicate that they tend to perceive lower levels of belonging than their peers from intact families, and this partially accounts for the lower average levels of adjustment post‐divorce (Aslantürk & Mavili, 2020; King et al., 2018; Rejaän, van der Valk, Schrama, et al., 2021). From a family systems theory perspective (Minuchin, 1985; Cox & Paley, 2003), these lower levels of belonging can only be understood in the context of the whole family system, including the transactional relationships between youth and their parents.…”

“…The concept family belonging broadly refers to one's feelings of being at home within the family: of being paid attention to, being understood, having fun together, and wanting to be present (Leake, 2007). The drastic changes and negative family processes that often take place in families after a parental divorce or separation can pose lasting and recurring challenges for the sense of belonging of youth (for a review, see Rejaän, van der Valk, Schrama, et al., 2021). A parental divorce should not just be viewed as a stressful life event for youth, but rather as an ongoing reorganization that is often followed by future transitions in family life (Amato, 2010).…”

The Divorce Process and Child Adaptation Trajectory Typology (DPCATT) Model: The Shaping Role of Predivorce and Postdivorce Interparental Conflict

“…In general, supportive coparenting helps preserve the nonresidential parent’s involvement in childrearing after parental breakup and also has been widely demonstrated to be beneficial for child adjustment over parental divorce process (Adamsons & Pasley, 2006 ; Bergström et al, 2021 ; Lamela et al, 2016 ; Rejaän et al, 2021a , 2021b ), despite that such effects have been somewhat challenged (see Amato et al, 2011 ; Beckmeyer et al, 2014 ; and relevant discussion in the concluding section). Further, interventions reducing interparental conflict among separated parents in custody disputes can improve coparents’ relationship functioning and confidence in coparenting and thus promote their ability to work cooperatively (Owen & Rhoades, 2012 ).…”