KEY PROGRAM INGREDIENTS: GROUP SUPPORT PLUS
SKILL ENHANCEMENT
Safe, supportive group interactions are an essential ingredient of CODIP. One of the
most comforting aspects of the group for children comes from mutual support for shared
experiences and learning that they are not alone at a time when they feel that everything in
their life is changing. Individual factors shown in research to be correlated with children’s
postdivorce adjustment are integrated into the group program in a variety of ways. The
group format provides natural opportunities for exchanging accurate information on common
divorce-related issues and for clarifying common misconceptions about family
changes. A child who fears, deep down, that she is somehow responsible for her parents’
marital problems can find much comfort and relief from the words of a peer with similar
feelings—sometimes even more so than from the intellectual assurances of an adult