When separating, parents need to inform them and explain how it will affect the child. They often have no opportunity to ask questions. Research by Dunn et al, 2001 Smart & Neale, 2000, and Smart 2002 indicated that when parents were asked about talking to children about the separation/divorce, 44% of time mother told kids, 23% of time no one talked to them; 17% of the time, parents discussed separation together; 45% of the time, parents only used one or two statements and on