Nov. 15, 2018-More father parenting time mitigates the harm of parent conflict

Fabricius and Luecken (2007) studied college students and found that more parent conflict around the time of the divorce predicted more insecurity about parent conflict, as measured by the PFAD, years later in young adulthood, which in turn predicted worse current stress-related physical health. However, more parenting time with fathers mitigated the harm from parent conflict. Specifically, more parenting time with fathers during childhood, in both high- and low-conflict families, predicted greater emotional security of father-child relationships in young adulthood, which in turn predicted better stress-related physical health. Both findings are consistent with EST, which holds that the child’s emotional security in parent-child relationships is distinct from the child’s emotional security about parent conflict, and that each contributes to the child’s well-being.

William V. Fabricius (2019), “Equal Parenting Time: The Case for a Legal Presumption”, Invited paper to appear in October 2019 in the Oxford Handbook of Children and the Law, edited by J.G. Dwyer, pre-publication online early 2019, Manuscript, p. 13