CONTACT WITH NONRESIDENT PARENTS, INTERPARENTAL CONFLICT, AND CHILDRENS BEHAVIOR

Previous studies have yielded inconsistent results about the implications of contact with nonresidential parents for children in single-parent households. This study tested the hypothesis that children's contact with nonresident parents decreases children's behavior problems when interparental conflict is low but increases children's behavior problems when interparental conflict is high. Data were analyzed from 1,285 children in single-parent families from the National Survey of Families and Households. The hypothesis was supported among boys from divorced families. No support for the hypothesis was found among girls, regardless of family background.