A court-mandated workshop for adolescent children of divorcing parents: a program evaluation.

This article provides a description and an empirical evaluation of a predivorce workshop established by the Family Court of Allen County, Indiana, for adolescent children (N = 48) of divorcing parents. Highlighted are the concerns of the adolescents, the approaches taken by the workshop staff, and the impact of the program on the participants. Viewpoints on the clinical, ethical, and legal issues involved in "required" predivorce counseling for adolescents are presented. The preventive nature of the program, its means of transforming initial resentment toward the workshop experience into positive feelings, and the implications for future practice and research are also discussed.