ABSTRACT
A qualitative study was conducted, in which 28 college students were interviewed about their romantic relationships and the experiences associated with their parents' divorce. Variability was found to exist in the nature of the participants' divorce-related experiences. This variability is captured by categories representing the pre-divorce context and post-divorce changes surrounding parental divorce. A number of categories also emerged which characterize the participants' beliefs about and behaviors in romantic relationships. A model was developed to describe the apparent influence of parental divorce and individual characteristics on the participants' romantic relationships. Results demonstrate that parental divorce should not be simply viewed as a negative event. Rather, many situations exist in which parental divorce results in improved family relationships.
