Drawings,Diagnoses, and the Clinician's Learning Curve

In order to understand better the experience of becoming a lone parent after marital breakdown a taxonomy of positive as well as negative appraisals and possible coping strategies was constructed. Experiential structures elicited through multidimensional scaling were used to form the basis of the Lone Parenthood Scales. The Scales, with demonstrated reliabilities and construct validity, were then administered to a sample of lone parents who were found to experience concern over their children's limited family life but relief at their separation and hope of becoming closer to their children. They saw themselves as coping with problems by direct, positive action. Further uses for the Scales were discussed.