The Lived Experiences of Adult Children of Mid to Later-life Parental Divorce: An Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis

• Main Author: Collins Ricketts, Joan
• Format: Others
• Published: NSUWorks 2015
• Subjects: ACD; Adult Children; Divorce; Effects; Mid-later Life Parental; Phenomenological Anlysis; Arts and Humanities; Marriage and Family Therapy and Counseling; Mental and Social Health; Social and Behavioral Sciences
• Online Access: http://nsuworks.nova.edu/shss_dft_etd/19; http://nsuworks.nova.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1018&context=shss_dft_etd

This study examined the lived experiences of adult children of mid-later life parental divorce. It was designed and conducted to address the gap in the current literature regarding this phenomenon. The experiences of 5 Adult Children of Divorce (ACD) ages 25 to 45, who experienced mid-later life parental divorce, were examined using in-depth semi-structured interviews. The researcher employed an interpretive phenomenological analysis (IPA) of which the findings illustrated various outcomes for adults experiencing their parents’ mid-later life divorce. The results of this study showed that parents’ waiting until the children are “grown” does not mitigate potentially detrimental outcomes for these “adult children.” Some of these concerns shared by the ACDs interviewed included: dealing with the shock of the divorce, the acrimonious parental relationships post divorce, feeling the need to choose sides, effects of the divorce on the ACDs' children, among others. Future studies and implications for the field of marriage and family therapy were offered.