A Comprehensive Guide to Child Custody Evaluations: Mental Health and Legal Perspectives

2008
ISBN: 978-1-4899-9405-9
Verlag: Springer US

Buch, Englisch, 702 Seiten, Paperback, Format (B × H): 155 mm x 235 mm, Gewicht: 1089 g

Mental health professionals are now frequently asked to offer opinions regarding child custody and visitation issues. In formulating a recommendation, the evaluator analyzes family dynamics and their effect on the child. This comprehensive guide provides brief summaries of the various legal issues, social science research, and assessment procedures involved in court-ordered evaluations of children and families. It also contains guidelines for performing child custody evaluations for the family courts, along with brief summaries of the related social science research and legal criteria. Coverage incorporates discussion of the laws and the specific issues, including sexual orientation, mental illness, substance abuse, violence and physical abuse. It also offers samples of child custody cases.

Zielgruppe

Professional/practitioner

Autoren/Hrsg.

Rohrbaugh, Joanna Bunker

Fachgebiete

• Sozialwissenschaften Soziologie | Soziale Arbeit Soziale Arbeit/Sozialpädagogik
• Rechtswissenschaften Recht, Rechtswissenschaft Allgemein Rechtssoziologie, Rechtspsychologie, Rechtslinguistik
• Sozialwissenschaften Psychologie Psychotherapie / Klinische Psychologie Kinder- und Jugendlichenpsychotherapie
• Sozialwissenschaften Psychologie Psychologische Disziplinen Kriminalpsychologie, Forensische Psychologie

Inhaltsverzeichnis

General Considerations.- The Search for Truth: Science and Pseudoscience in Child Custody Evaluations.- Roles and Ethical Issues in Custody Disputes.- Models and Guidelines for Child Custody Evaluations.- Standards for Resolution of Custody Disputes.- General Legal and Professional Issues.- Communication Among Professionals.- The “Ultimate Issue” – Recommendations.- Social Science Research and Parenting Plans.- Developmental Needs of Children and Families.- Managing Parent/Child Contact in High-Conflict and Abusive Families.- Parenting Plans and~Interventions.- Ordering, Conducting, And Reviewing Evaluations.- Uses and Limitations of Psychological Tests.- Starting the Evaluation.- Collecting Information.- Writing the Report.- Reviewing Custody Evaluations.- Special Issues in Evaluating Children and Families.- Diversity in Family Structures.- Relocation.- Estrangement and Alienation.- Abduction and Parental Kidnapping.- Children with Disabilities.- Mental Illness in Parents.- Substance Abuse.- Domestic Violence.- Child Abuse and Neglect.- Child Sexual Abuse.

Über Autor(innen)

Joanna Bunker Rohrbaugh, Ph.D. is a trauma specialist who has been on the faculty of the Harvard Medical School for over twenty years, and is a clinical supervisor for the Victims of Violence and other outpatient programs at Cambridge Hospital. She holds a B.A. from Brown University and a Ph.D. in Personality and Developmental Psychology from Harvard University. Dr. Rohrbaugh has a private forensic psychology practice in Cambridge, MA, where she does child custody evaluations, parenting/bonding evaluations, and forensic consultation, and also serves as a child expert and a divorce coach in collaborative law cases.

Dr. Rohrbaugh is a member of the Board of Directors of the Massachusetts Chapter of the Association of Family and Conciliation Courts (AFCC) and a former board member of the Massachusetts Association of Guardians Ad Litem (MAGAL). Her family forensic experience includes Custody and Visitation, Care and Protection, Adoption, Child Estrangement/Alienation, Domestic Violence, Sexual Orientation, Physical Abuse of Child, PTSD, Sexual Abuse of Children, Substance Abuse, Removal, and Termination of Parental Rights.