Divorced Parents Use Internet to Fight for Children

According to the recent study, couples who separate on a sour note are extensively using email, texts and social media in order to control their ex partners’ access to kids by manipulating or withholding information.

It also turned out that it was kids, who suffered the most between warring parents. The study was conducted by Lawrence Ganong, a professor of human development and family studies. It revealed that ex-partners, who were cooperative with one another, were largely using emails and texting in their effort to facilitate effective co-parenting as compared to hostile couples. The researcher pointed out that technology makes it easier for divorced couples both to get along and not to get along. If parents use technology effectively, it makes co-parenting easier, resulting in less stress on the kids. In the meantime, parents who use communication
technology in order to manipulate or withhold information from the other parent are likely to cause pain to the kid.

The researchers interviewed 49 divorced parents individually, asking them questions about the quality of their relationships with their ex-partners. In the end, they found out that those parents who had cooperative relationships extensively used Internet calendars in order to share information about their kids’ activities. At the same time, separated parents with hostile relationships tend to use the same technology in order to limit communication.

There are a few examples of the parents who pretended that they never received emails from their former spouses. The report suggests that divorce counsellors should teach separated parents other effective ways to use communication technology in attempt to maintain healthy environments for their kids.

The researchers point out that parents who are hostile should set their feelings aside and realize that they need to communicate effectively in order to protect the emotional well-being of their kids. Indeed, Internet is actually a great resource for hostile parents who aren’t able to talk face-to-face. They can communicate essential information while editing what they say in order to avoid conflict. In addition, the parents will always have a record of what was agreed upon.