Melissa McSurley, a psychology junior, said though her father worked a lot after her parents' divorce, he was still able to spend a lot of time with her.
"I lived with my dad," McSurley said. "He spent a lot of time with me, which helped me cope with the divorce."
She said his quality of time also helped her do well in school and in her social life.
A new study conducted by ASU psychology professors Irwin Sandler and Sharlene Wolchik revealed this isn't a rarity.
It indicated that children of divorce whose parents spend quality time with their children have fewer problems in the future than those who don't.
Six years ago, 240 divorced families with children between the ages of 9 to 12 participated in the study.
The researchers broke them into different groups with one of the groups being given self-help books and a self-study program.
Another group attended an 11-week class where the parents were taught skills such as listening and communication.
Recently the researchers re-examined the families' lives of those who participated in the study.
The parenting class group showed a 36 percent reduction in a wide range of problems for children, including mental health, behavior problems, drug use and the number of sexual partners.
"Classes are more successful because they weren't just information," Sandler said. "Every week they got homework. It required that they actually make changes in their family. And that's what does it. It's not just what you think or say it's what you do."
Some of the things they had to put into practice were quality time, good listening and good discipline, he added.
The parents invested two hours a week in this 11-week program, which is the equivalent to about a day.
"I think the remarkable thing is this is a testament to the power of parenting," Sandler said. "They spent a day six years ago and then there was no program for six years. Now, we are seeing all of these effects."
He said suppose there was a pill a parent had to take for 11 weeks and then six years later their kids had fewer mental health problems.
Everyone would take that pill, he added.
"That pill is called parenting," Sandler said.
He said quality time is something every parent, divorced or not, should put into practice. In the class, they told parents to set aside time every day to spend with their kids.
"At this time, the mom's not doing anything else," Sandler said. "The mom spends 15 minutes reviewing the day with her child. She puts everything else aside and the mom focuses on the kid—that's quality."
He added that he found it remarkable that the style of parenting is changeable.
"It's not something that is built in — that you are either a good parent or a bad one," Sandler said. "With hard work, people can improve their parenting."
Reach the reporter at susan.padilla@asu.edu.
