Qualitative And Quantitative Evaluation of Women's Adaptation to Divorce: A Follow-Up Study

Abstract

This study aims to conduct a quantitative and qualitative assessment of post-divorce adjustment among women who completed a Cognitive-Behavioral Theory (CBT) based group intervention, two years following the program. This research was conducted with a nested mixed design. The qualitative part covering the interviews with divorced women (n=11) constitutes the general design, and the quantitative part covering the data collected with the scale kit constitutes the supporting design. Five themes emerged reflecting changes in the women’s post-divorce adjustment: (1) cognitive, emotional, and behavioral awareness and change; (2) acceptance of events, situations, or individuals that cannot be changed; (3) establishing and maintaining boundaries; (4) redefining womanhood alongside motherhood; and (5) desire to remain in the present moment. Additionally, three themes were identified that explained how these changes were experienced: (1) the healing power of the group, (2) the role of time, and (3) the form and content of the intervention. According to the results of ANOVA, significant differences were found in favor of the group in the total score, grief, anger and self-worth sub-dimensions between the pre-test and post-test and these differences were maintained in the subsequent measurements. In addition, a significant difference was found in favor of the intervention group on the trust–intimacy sub-dimension at both the follow-up and two-year follow-up assessments. Qualitative and quantitative results indicate that the improvement in the divorce adjustment of women who received psychological support continues two years later. Furthermore, the findings suggest that Cognitive Behavioral Theory based intervention has made significant contributions to this improvement in women’s adjustment. These findings can be guiding for mental health professionals working with divorced individuals.

Keywords

• divorced women
• post-divorce adjustment
• Cognitive Behavioral Theory
• follow-up study

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