Parenting Capacity Evaluation Practices: Are They Efficient? Findings amongst marriages and cohabitation that end in dissolution have shown custody and access disputes to be the “single biggest issue in civil law” (Roesh, Zapf, Hart, 2010). The role of forensic psychology regarding this issue is seen in the form of parenting capacity evaluations, otherwise known as child custody evaluations. Although many dissolved marriages or relationships end without the need of such evaluations, it is important to understand the current practices regarding custody cases and the evaluations provided by forensic psychologists in these cases. Currently, the dominant doctrine is the “best interest of the child” principle (Roesh et al., 2010). In an attempt to evaluate what is essentially in the "best interest of the child" evaluators may use methods including interviews, to parent and child, as well as a variety of psychological tests. This paper will further explore what is necessary for child custody evaluations and the role evaluators play in these cases. To begin, we must examine the “best interest of the child” doctrine. Is this doctrine helping or hindering the child custody evaluation process? One important point made by John Mercer (2009) is that this term is not clearly defined and may in fact have different meanings for different children. This points to the idea that child custody evaluations are a very case/individual specific type of evaluation. In child custody cases, the goal of the court is to resolve the disagreements in regards to the “parenting plan” between the parents. As stated, every child, parent, and situation is different. When a child is developing, the needs of the child might change accordingly (Mercer, 2009). I... ... middle of paper ... ...greatly. As psychologist who may influence public policy, it is important to note how integrating research can improve this specific field where psychology meets law. References George, C., Isaacs, M. B., & Marvin, R. S. (2011). INCORPORATING ATTACHMENT ASSESSMENT INTO CUSTODY EVALUATIONS: THE CASE OF A 2-YEAR-OLD AND HER PARENTS. Family Court Review, 49(3), 483-500. doi:10.1111/j.1744-1617.2011.01386.x Hartson, J.N. (2010). Children with Two Homes: Creating Developmentally Appropriate Parenting Plans For Children Ages Zero to Two. American Journal Of Family Law, 23(4), 191-199 Patel, S. H., & Choate, L. (2014) Conducting Child Custody Evaluations: Best Practices for Mental Health Counselors who are Court-Appointed as Child Custody Evaluators. Roesch, R., Zapf, P. A., & Hart, S. D. (2010). Forensic psychology and law. Hoboken, N.J.: John Wiley & Sons.
The areas in which these reforms should occur are twofold. One argument that Judge Ross raises repeatedly is that measures should be taken to insure the sustainability of Family Court employees through more manageable caseloads. The necessity of this change is evident in countless examples of children suffering as a result of constantly changing, thin-spread, staff. In one particular instance, a six month child abuse case is adjourned because they “don’t have the medical records” in time (128). The second argument that can be implicitly made based off of Judge Ross’s expressed frustrations is that, if given the proper time for consideration, there should be more room for consideration of circumstance in Family Court. From a legal standpoint, there is substantial evidence for the validity of a common law approach to Family Court over the traditional civil law. Judge Ross establishes that ideally “In each case to protect children, to assure due process, to remain neutral until the facts are established, to apply common sense and sound judgment within the framework of the law in making decisions—the Family Court judge’s charge lies quite outside the arena of public policy, comment, and debate” (104). However, as seen in many of his cases, the combination of the overflowing workload and an inability to apply proper consideration to any given circumstance makes it impossible for the pre-existing
A state that undertakes custody of a child is declaring that it can do a better job providing protection. This system is a powerful agent of support, providing positive nurturing environments that enable a child to reach his or her potential. Nonetheless, when children suffer additional abuse in the system, this government intervention should be questioned.
Goldsmith, D.F., Oppenheim, D. & Wanlass, J. (2004). Separation and reunification: Using attachment theory and research to inform decisions affecting the placements of children in foster care. Juvenile and family court journal, 55(2), 1-14.
Each of the 50 states has an agency responsible for protecting children. In Los Angeles, California, this agency is known as DCFS (Department of Children and Families Services). The Los Angeles Department of Family Services has recently made the news after a class action law suites ranging in the millions has left locals wondering whether or not DCFS is actually protecting the children they take into their custody. With the increasing number of cases each day, concerns are being raised as to whether the rights of parents are being violated. It is common knowledge that there have been serious accuracy flaws resulting in the wrongful termination of many parents’ rights. However, little is being done to fix these errors and give parents their children back. Child Protective Services is the most needed yet unwanted Agencies in each state. While a system is necessary to intervene and protect children who are abused, there are speculation on the procedures and policy the state uses. While interventi...
In the United States today more than one-half of all marriages end in divorce. The purpose of this paper is to examine the reason why women have typically received custody of the children far more often than the fathers. In order to better understand child custody one must first examine how fathers have often times been left out of the picture, and conversely why mothers have had such hard times raising children on their own. This paper will first examine the perspective of a father who has lost custody of his children.
Eddy, J., C.R., M., Schiffmann, T., Newton, R., Olin, L., Leve, L., et al. (2008). Development of a multisystemic parent management training intervention for incarcerated parents, their children and families. Clinical Psychologist , 86-98.
Lyman, D. Michael; Criminal Investigation, The Art and Science; 3rd edition, 2002 Prentice Hall. Pgs. 188-200.
Costanzo, M., & Krauss, D. (2012). Forensic and Legal Psychology: Psychological Science Applied to Law. New York: Worth Publishers.
In retrospect, joint custody causes children to obtain the best childhood possible and also provides stability within the mental and physical aspects of a child’s family
Spellman, B., & Busey, T. (2010). EMERGING TRENDS IN PSYCHOLOGY AND LAW RESEARCH: An editorial overview. Psychonomic Bulletin & Review, 17(2), 141-141-2.
The majority of divorcing parents cannot resolve custody disputes because they fail to resolve interpersonal conflicts (Burke, McIntosh & Gridley, 2009; Amato, 2000; Cawood, 2010). In fact, the divorce process has a series of partially predictable events and emotions exhibited over some time (Emery, 2014). As a result, family-related disputes are best resolved through mediation before resorting to litigation (SALRC, 2016; Barsky, 2016).
Review, PubMed PMID: 19543886. Saferstein, R. (2011). Criminalistics: An introduction to forensic science (10th Ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education, Inc.
Something else that contributes to child neglect is a fast rate of family breakdown. This is an effect of divorce and rapid increase in single parent pregnancies. Couples marrying today face an even higher chance of divorcing at some point during their lives together. “A family’s deterioration can come about in ways other than separation” (Wilson 50). Staying together, in certain conditions and situations may increase further economical or psychological problems that may affect the child. Social attitudes today are scarcely more tolerant. “With the ratio of one divorce in four marriages moving towards one in three, we have been forced to look beyond those unexamined assumptions to asses realistically the changing role and changing needs of the family in Canadian society” ( Canadian Council 28).
Gaensslen, R. E., Harris, H A., & Lee, H. (2008). Introduction to Forensic Science and Criminalistics. New York, NY: The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. .
...r an equal amount of time can increase the happiness of the child. Not having shared custody can create a bridge between the child and one of the parents. This is a way for the child to see how independent the parent can be and how they take care of business. Modeling how a person should be in satisfying relations is another way a child can benefit. Seeing that the parent can move on from something that they felt was not good for them and turn it to something positive can be a life lesson for the child. Therefore showing the child to never settle for something less than what they want.