Impact of divorce and loss of parental contact on health complaints among adolescents

During the past 50–60 years, marital divorce has become more common and today 50% of marriages in Norway end in divorce. An increasing number of children are exposed to single parenting, blended families and unstable family situations. According to Statistics Norway 9 950, children under the age of 18 experienced divorce in 2008. In reality far more children experience parental separation. Concern about children growing up in single-parent households has been expressed, and many believe this may have persistent negative consequences for the children involved. Conclusions from literature regarding mental health of children and adolescents from divorced households compared with controls from intact households are contradictory. The main discussion is whether divorce is predominantly harmful to a minority or whether the positive effects of separation may compensate fo…