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A recent study from America has found that watching films about relationships can be just as effective at preventing divorce for couples as other, more traditional forms of marriage counselling.

Researchers at Rochester University found that where couples watched and discussed five relationship films over a month, the divorce or separation rate fell from 24% to 11% after three years.

"We thought the movie treatment would help, but not nearly as much as the other programs in which we were teaching all of these state-of-the-art skills," said Ronald Rogge, associate professor of psychology at the University of Rochester and lead author of the study.

A recent study by relationship charity OnePlusOne has found that witnessing parental conflict can have a profoundly negative effect on the mental health of children, and leave them with behavioural, social or emotional issues.

The study set out to examine why some children are more negatively affected by inter-parental conflict than others, what can be done to improve psychological outcomes in the short and long-term, and how early identification and management of negative behaviour patterns in families can prevent escalations and alleviate psychological distress and later psychological damage to children.

The researchers hope their findings will be of help to professionals working with children and families where inter-parental conflict is a common feature of family life.

Recent figures released by the Office for National Statistics have revealed that although the overall divorce rate in England and Wales has been falling since the mid-1990s, there has been a steady increase in the number of over-60s who are choosing to get divorced.

Responding to these figures, relationship support charity Relate’s Chief Executive, Ruth Sutherland, said, “It is clear from today’s statistics that there are many pressures facing couples as they grow older. Relationships are often missing in the current debate on our ageing society but 83% of people we surveyed aged over 50 told us that strong personal relationships were the most important factor to a happy later life. This data shows once again that this is a very real issue for many older people.

“Relate is continuing to call for a Minister of State for Ageing Society and for people to think about the importance of relationships at all stages of life. This would help to drive a consistent strategy in central and local government, putting healthy relationships at the heart of a achieving a good quality life as we get older, alongside health and financial security.”