Die belewing van sosiale ondersteuning by kinders uit egskeidinggesinne

Abstract

This study forms part of an inter-university research project that studies the psychological resilience of children in late-middle childhood in the South African context. The goal of the current study was to determine whether children in divorced and intact families experience social support differently. According to the literature consulted, divorce has a negative impact on families across the world and consequently on the children in those families. It is also apparent that children from divorced families often experience a loss of social support, especially directly after the divorce. The research population of the greater inter-university project comprised a random sample of 1 000 primary school children. The children were chosen from different schools to represent the different races, languages and socio-economic groups in South Africa. After the testing was completed, the data from the inter-university project was further (for the purposes of the current research study) divided into two groups, namely children from intact families and children from divorced families. These groups were used in the present study. The final sample size for the present study fluctuated between 515 and 554 children as a result of the extent of this project and practical problems experienced during data collection.

The measuring instruments used to reach the goals for this study were the Social Support Appraisal Scale (SSAS) and the Biographical Questionnaire. The SSAS measures children's appraisals of social support and the latter was used to gather information regarding the number and gender of children from divorced and intact families. The SSAS proved to be reliable, whereas the construct validity of this test is questionable for the specific population. No meaningful differences where found between the perception of social support in children from divorced and intact families. In this study the girls from divorced homes experienced more peer group support than the boys. The contradictions in literature shows the need for more research regarding this subject in the South African context.