Parenting Time, Parent Conflict, Parent–Child Relationships, and Children’s Physical Health

Abstract

Two questions often confront family law courts and policymakers: “Is the quantity or the quality of parenting time more important for children’s outcomes?” and “Should parenting time be limited in high-conflict families?” Most discussions in the research literature give the following answers: The quality of parenting time is more important for children’s well-being than the quantity of parenting time, and when there is frequent and severe parent conflict, parenting time should be limited because it can seriously harm children. This chapter argues that these longstanding conclusions should be re-examined in the light of new evidence. It presents new data on the correlation between quantity of parenting time and quality of parent-child relationships in families with and without severe parent conflict and discusses new findings in the health literature on family relationships and children’s long-term, stress-related physical health. These new findings indicate that the lingering situation of minimal parenting time with fathers for great numbers of children is a serious public health issue.

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