Two homes, one life: young people's experience of home and family when living in shared residence

Coleman, Jennifer (2024) Two homes, one life: young people's experience of home and family when living in shared residence. Doctoral thesis, University of East Anglia.

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Abstract

Four million children lived in separated families in Great Britain in 2022. Whilst historically, most of these children would have lived with their mother and visited their father, changes in perceptions of parenting and working are resulting in a more equitable division of childcare. One such arrangement is shared residence, where children move between their parents’ houses, spending a significant time with each parent. This study aimed to increase our understanding of how young people experience home and family when living in shared residence. The study adopted a qualitative methodology, utilising photo elicitation, family maps and advice writing within semi-structured interviews with 22 young people (11-24 years old) from sixteen families. Data from across these sources was analysed using a thematic analysis and visuo-textual analysis approach. The key findings from the study are presented within themes relating to family, time and home, and have been collected into an ecological system’s model to convey shared aspects of what contributes to shared residence working well and not so well. Importantly, this study found that it is not the amount of time that children spend with parents that matters, but the amount of available time that they spend together. Additionally, in line with previous findings, it is the strength of relationships which have the most impact on a young person’s experience of shared residence. The following five key messages were developed from the analysis: each family needs an arrangement that suits them; arrangements need to remain flexible and responsive to changing wishes and circumstances; parents should ensure good communication to remove the burden of management from young people; parents should practice an arrangement that recognises the totality of a child’s life; and parents should create family spaces which allow young people to feel comfortable and that it is their space.

Item Type:	Thesis (Doctoral)
Faculty \ School:	Faculty of Social Sciences > School of Social Work
Depositing User:	James Tweddle
Date Deposited:	11 Jul 2024 10:37
Last Modified:	11 Jul 2024 10:37
URI:	https://ueaeprints.uea.ac.uk/id/eprint/95871
DOI:

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