I think to his mind respect means catering to his mommy.. if you love my mommy you will love me...
As you said he's seven years old
Most boys get OUT of that mindset when they hit 13 - 15. Puberty forces children to rebel and isolate themselves from their adult counterparts... MOST teens go through this and come ou the other end... They still love their parents, but they respect them as people, they don't idolize them like they did as children...
DIvorce can hurry that process along, which is why its so painful for kids to have parents who divorce.. it forces that shift too early for kids and its very painful.
Your husband very likley never made that shift at all... He still looks at his parents as would an infant
