Over half of all marriages end in divorce. What effect do these divorces have on the young children involved? Many people assume that the changes involved in divorce would naturally lead to some emotional problems, with potential permanent ramifications. Hidden in this view, however, is the assumption that the traditional, two parent families is the most appropriate environment in which to raise children. Indeed most research on children of divorce has been based on this assumption.
             Several psychologists have begun to question this assumption. They suggest that nontraditional families-single parent families, for example can produce happy, emotionally stable children. This could mean that divorce is not always negative. In fact, the effects of living in a highly conflict environment, such as the environment of a couple contemplating divorce, could be more damaging than the actual act of divorce itself. In this sense, the level of family conflict would have more to do with a child's adjustment than would the number of parents he or she has.
             There has been reason to question the validity of composition hypothesis. Theoretically, it has been assumed that the nuclear family is the norm and, by implication, that any departure from it is deviant and therefore deleterious to those involved. Even if this were the case, no theoretical perspective recognizes that these effects may be short live or otherwise mitigated by compensatory mechanisms and alternative role models. In the absence of a parent, it is possible that developmental needs are met by other actors.
             It is simplistic and inaccurate to think of divorce as having uniform consequences for children. The consequences of divorce vary along different dimensions of well being characteristics of children and characteristics of families. Characteristics on the other hand, are critical to youthful well being. Family conflict contributes to many proble
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