Six-year follow-up of preventive interventions for children of divorce: a randomized controlled trial. 2002

Sharlene A Wolchik, and Irwin N Sandler, and Roger E Millsap, and Brett A Plummer, and Shannon M Greene, and Edward R Anderson, and Spring R Dawson-McClure, and Kathleen Hipke, and Rachel A Haine
Department of Psychology, Program for Prevention Research, Prevention Research Center, Arizona State University, PO Box 876005, Tempe, AZ 85287-6005, USA. sharlene.wolchik@asu.edu

BACKGROUND Compared with their peers with nondivorced parents, adolescents with divorced parents are more likely to have mental health problems, drop out of school, and become pregnant. The long-term effects of intervention programs for this population are unknown. OBJECTIVE To evaluate the long-term effectiveness of 2 programs designed to prevent mental health problems in children with divorced parents. METHODS Six-year follow-up of a randomized controlled trial of 2 intervention programs (mother program: 11 group and 2 individual sessions; mother plus child program: mother program and 11 group sessions for children) and a control condition (books on postdivorce adjustment), which was conducted in a large metropolitan US city from April 1998 through March 2000. METHODS A total of 218 families (91% of the original sample) with adolescents aged between 15 and 19 years were reinterviewed. METHODS Externalizing and internalizing problems, diagnosed mental disorders, drug and alcohol use, and number of sexual partners. RESULTS Eleven percent of adolescents in the mother plus child program (95% confidence interval [CI], 3.8%-18.2%) had a 1-year prevalence of diagnosed mental disorder compared with 23.5% (95% CI, 13.8%-33.2%) of adolescents in the control program (P =.007). Adolescents in the mother plus child program had fewer sexual partners (mean [SE], 0.68 [0.16]) compared with adolescents in the control program (1.65 [0.37]; P =.01). Adolescents with higher initial mental health problems whose families were in the mother plus child program had lower externalizing problems (P =.007) and fewer symptoms of mental disorder (P =.02) compared with those in the control program. Compared with controls, adolescents whose mothers participated in the mother program and who had higher initial mental health problems had lower levels of externalizing problems (P<.001); fewer symptoms of mental disorder (P =.005); and less alcohol (P =.005), marijuana (P =.02), and other drug use (P =.01). CONCLUSIONS In adolescents of divorced parents, the mother program and the mother plus child program reduced symptoms of mental disorder; rates of diagnoses of mental disorder; levels of externalizing problems; marijuana, alcohol, and other drug use; and number of sexual partners.

UI MeSH Term Description Entries
D008297 Male Males
D002648 Child A person 6 to 12 years of age. An individual 2 to 5 years old is CHILD, PRESCHOOL. Children
D003153 Community Health Services Diagnostic, therapeutic and preventive health services provided for individuals in the community. Community Health Care,Community Healthcare,Health Services, Community,Services, Community Health,Community Health Service,Health Care, Community,Health Service, Community,Healthcare, Community,Service, Community Health
D004243 Divorce Legal dissolution of an officially recognized marriage relationship. Divorced,Separated,Separation,Divorces,Separations
D005260 Female Females
D005500 Follow-Up Studies Studies in which individuals or populations are followed to assess the outcome of exposures, procedures, or effects of a characteristic, e.g., occurrence of disease. Followup Studies,Follow Up Studies,Follow-Up Study,Followup Study,Studies, Follow-Up,Studies, Followup,Study, Follow-Up,Study, Followup
D006801 Humans Members of the species Homo sapiens. Homo sapiens,Man (Taxonomy),Human,Man, Modern,Modern Man
D000223 Adaptation, Psychological A state of harmony between internal needs and external demands and the processes used in achieving this condition. (From APA Thesaurus of Psychological Index Terms, 8th ed). Behavior, Adaptive,Healthy Adaptation,Positive Adaptation,Psychological Recovery,Adaptation, Psychologic,Adjustment,Psychological Adaptation,Adaptation, Healthy,Adaptation, Positive,Adaptive Behavior,Adaptive Behaviors,Healthy Adaptations,Positive Adaptations,Psychologic Adaptation,Psychological Recoveries,Recovery, Psychological
D000293 Adolescent A person 13 to 18 years of age. Adolescence,Youth,Adolescents,Adolescents, Female,Adolescents, Male,Teenagers,Teens,Adolescent, Female,Adolescent, Male,Female Adolescent,Female Adolescents,Male Adolescent,Male Adolescents,Teen,Teenager,Youths
D001523 Mental Disorders Psychiatric illness or diseases manifested by breakdowns in the adaptational process expressed primarily as abnormalities of thought, feeling, and behavior producing either distress or impairment of function. Mental Illness,Psychiatric Diseases,Psychiatric Disorders,Psychiatric Illness,Behavior Disorders,Diagnosis, Psychiatric,Mental Disorders, Severe,Psychiatric Diagnosis,Illness, Mental,Mental Disorder,Mental Disorder, Severe,Mental Illnesses,Psychiatric Disease,Psychiatric Disorder,Psychiatric Illnesses,Severe Mental Disorder,Severe Mental Disorders

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