The experiences of divorce among African American women with an absent mother

A significant amount of research has examined divorce and single parenting; however, limited research has addressed the experience of African American daughters who were raised by single fathers and had an absent mother due to the divorce. This research presents findings from a qualitative research study that examined the lived experiences of 10 African American women with absent mothers whose parents divorced during their childhoods. Research has shown that the effect of divorce on children's and adolescent's hearts, minds, and souls ranges from mild to severe, from seemingly small to observably significant, and from short-term to long-term. The current study used a qualitative methodological approach and phenomenological strategy to identify the effects of an absent mother and being raised solely by her father only on African American daughters. The researcher used semi-structured open-ended interview questions to engage the participants and explore their experiences. The results of this study revealed that the quality of the father-daughter relationship influenced the impact of the daughter's having an absent mother.