Parental Conflict: Outcomes and Interventions for Children and Families (Understanding and Strengthening Relationships)

There is increasing government recognition of the importance of early family experiences on individuals in the long term and of how inter-parental conflict influences children’s development. Recognition of the role of such factors early in life is key to helping both policy makers and practitioners promote positive outcomes for children. This accessible book reviews recent research showing how children who experience high levels of inter-parental conflict are at serious risk not only in terms of their own wellbeing, but also in relation to the perpetuation of these behaviours later in life. It examines the differences between ‘destructive’ and ‘constructive’ conflict and how they affect children, explores why some children are more adversely affected than others, and features the latest evidence on how conflict affects child physiology. Of particular note is the book’s focus on the growing evidence-based literature on conflict interventions within the last decade. A primer for practitioners working with families, policy makers, students and academics, it will show how to improve the tomorrows for children who experience challenging family experiences today. PARENTAL CONFLICT 2 CONTENTS 4 Foreword 8 Preface 10 1. Conflict in context 14 Changing family life 16 Introducing inter-parental conflict 20 Introducing child impacts 21 Introducing why outcomes from inter-parental conflict differ for children 23 2. Understanding different types of conflict 26 What type of conflict matters? 27 Differentiating destructive and constructive conflict 28 What about domestic violence? 31 Constructive conflict 32 3. The impact of inter-parental conflict on children 36 Emotional regulation: externalising and internalising problems 37 Family and social relationships 39 Poor health 40 Sleep 41 Academic performance 42 4. How does inter-parental conflict affect children? 46 Inter-parental conflict and troubled family relationships 47 Implications for children’s emotional security and attachment 50 Processes that explain the negative impact of couple conflict on parenting 50 Emotional, cognitive and behavioural responses to conflict: the child’s perspective 52 Inter-parental conflict and children’s early brain development 60 Sensitisation: don’t children get used to fighting parents? 61 5. Risk and resilience: why are some children affected more than others? 64 Child characteristics 65 Family characteristics 75 Extra-familial characteristics 85 6. Review of conflict-based interventions for couples 90 What should conflict interventions focus on? 91 Are there effective conflict interventions? 92 Focus on parenting: parent education programmes 93 Parenting intervention programmes that take account of the couple relationship 94 Programmes that focus on at-risk groups and challenging transitions 95 Interventions that focus specifically on conflict 98 Couples who have separated/divorced 104 Couples who are still together 106 Early intervention: relationship preparation or enhancement courses 112 What does the current evidence tell us? 115 7. Implications for practice: How to help families 118 When should we intervene? 118 Early intervention is important, but how early is early enough? 119 Who should interventions focus on? 120 What are some common components of couple interventions? 122 Moderating factors 128 Innovative ideas for conflict intervention 132 Conclusions 137 8. Conclusions and recommendations 140 Headline findings 141 How practitioners can help families in conflict 142 Gatekeepers to conflict interventions and further support 144 Promoting an early intervention approach and raising awareness 144 Help parents develop skills to avoid destructive conflict and to promote constructive conflict 145 Inform programme developers in how to customise conflict interventions 145 Follow-up support for parents 146 Focusing on children 148 Encouraging help seeking 149 How policy makers can help 150 The role of further research 151 References 152 Index 192 Researchers increasingly recognize the importance of early family experiences on children and the impact that inter-parental conflict has on child development. This book reviews recent research in order to show how children who experience high levels of inter-parental conflict are put at both an immediate psychological and physical risk and a longer-developing risk of recapitulating such behaviors. The authors examine topics such as the differences between destructive and constructive inter-parental conflict on child development, why some children are more adversely affected than others, and how conflict affects child physiology. Ultimately they provide suggestions for improving the futures of children who are experiencing challenging family environments today. The book shows how children are affected by conflict, explores why they respond to conflict in different ways, and provides clear, practical guidance on the best ways to ameliorate the effects.