[The attitude of children of divorce to child custody, court hearings and visiting rights--a survey in Zurich]

Abstract

In a study conducted in Zurich, 1877 apprentices were asked to fill out one of two questionnaires on child custody, court hearings and visiting rights. The results reported in the present paper are based on the responses of the 338 youths (18%) whose parents were divorced. Of the youths included, 46.4% said the child's wishes should be the main criterion in custody decisions; 25.7% were in favor of joint custody and 39.1% opposed to it. The majority of the apprentices thought the child should be heard in court (lowest age recommended: 11 +/- 3.18 years). How often the subjects visited the parent who did not have custody depended on their age at the time of the divorce and whether their parents had remarried.