'And she said, that mommy and daddy have decided to divorce': Young adults’ narratives on parents disclosing the divorce

• In Event: Family Communication Patterns and Narratives

Abstract

This paper examines the ways in which Finnish parents tell their under-aged children about the forthcoming divorce. The event of telling about the divorce is approached through the narratives of young adults having experienced parental divorce: 19 written and oral narratives are analyzed. Combination of narrative analysis and family communication is unique and rare in both in the American and Finnish family communication research. The approach and the results suggest further examination of the topic.

Authors

• Marjut Susanna Maenpaa, University of Helsinki

• Saila Poutiainen, Univ of Helsinki