Relationship of Parental Marital Dissolution and Sex to Selected Mental Health and Self-Concept Indicators in a Sample of Black University Freshmen

This study sought to examine the relationship between parental divorce/separation and selected variables in a university sample of 900 Black freshmen students. Subjects of divorced/separated parents were compared to subjects from intact homes, on a number of indicators of self-concept and mental health. Comparisons were also made between male and female subjects whose parents were divorced or separated. Tests of significance revealed significant differences between the sexes on two indicators of self-concept and two indicators of mental health. It was concluded that negative effects of divorce or separation for Black males and females may vary along specific dimensions which may be masked when these subjects are combined and compared with subjects from intact homes.