The effects of parental conflicts and divorce on the well-being of pupils in Dutch secondary education

Abstract

The conclusions of this article, investigating the well-being of Dutch youth with a large national sample of more than 9000 pupils in Dutch secondary education, are: 1. The well-being of pupils living in single-mother families is higher than that of pupils living in two-parent families with much parental conflict; 2.The well-being of pupils living in single-mother families with no parental conflict and with much contact with the departed father is lower than that of pupils living in two-parent families without parental conflict; 3. The degree of parental conflict after divorce is more important for the well-being of the children than the degree of contact with the departed father.