Comparison of Divorce Adjustment, Coping with Stress and Loneliness Feeling in Independent and Family-Dependent Divorced Women

Divorced women who are independent from their families, compared to divorced women who are dependent on their families, may show strategies to deal with tension, adapt to divorce, and feel lonely. The present study aimed to compare divorce adjustment, coping with stress and loneliness feeling in independent and family-dependent divorced women. 

The method of present research is descriptive-comparative. The statistical population of this research included all the divorced women covered by the Imam Khomeini Relief Foundation in Qom in 2019, from which 35 independent women and 35 women dependent on the family were selected through non-random and convenience sampling method. The research instruments included demographic questionnaire, "Fisher Divorce Adjustment Scale", "Coping Inventory for Stressful Situations" and "Loneliness Scale". Content validity of the instruments were measured by qualitative method and reliability by internal consistency method by calculating Cronbach's alpha coefficient. The data was analyzed in SPSS. 24.

The results of the multivariate analysis of variance showed that there was a significant difference between divorce adjustment (P=0.001, F=88.09), task-oriented coping (P=0.015, F=6.22), emotion-oriented coping (P=0.001, F=72.9), avoidant-distracted coping (P=0.001, F=11.7) and loneliness feeling (P=0.001, F=46.5) between independent and family-dependent divorced women.

Family-independent divorced women showed a higher score in task-oriented coping and a lower score in emotion-oriented and avoidant-distracted coping compared to family-dependent divorced women. Family-independent divorced women showed a higher score in the total score of divorce adjustment and a lower score in the total score of loneliness feeling compared to family-dependent divorced women. Therefore, it is suggested to the officials of the Imam Khomeini Relief Foundation to implement training courses on coping strategies to reduce the feeling of loneliness and increase adaptation to divorce and the independence of divorced women dependent on the family.