Divorce. It's an all-too-common word these days, and for many children, the concept can be very damaging. Tense custody battles and separated fighting parents can cause confusion, and kids don't always know the best way to process what's happening to their families.
Oftentimes, one parent will pit the child against the other parent, using the child as a pawn to get the courts to grant custody to he/she. In the 1980's, Dr. R.A. Gardner coined the term "parental alienation syndrome" (or PAS). The concept is very real, and field social workers, like Carson Waugh, who works throughout the Tri-Cities, see it all the time.
"Divorce is higher than ever," says Waugh, "and we're putting ourselves in front of our children. we're putting our own selfish ahead of our child's well-being."
There are many other reasons a child can become detached or alienated from a parent, but parental alienation comes up in court rooms a lot.
Waugh says, "suddenly, Mom wants custody; Dad wants custody; who's going to get it?"
Lawyers need solid evidence to convince a court that the child should stay with one parent. At this point, PAS is not established in the field of psychology, which means the opposing lawyer could try to discredit the concept.
Dr. Thomas Schacht, a psychologist and professor at East Tennessee State University's Quillen College of Medicine, says "The judge has a duty to do what's in the best interest of the child. The judge isn't hearing from the child most of the time; the judge is hearing from the parents, who have their own interests."
Dr. Schacht is a part of what's called the court clinic, a team of experts that helps judges learn more about a family, and the children involved. To help the court have a better understanding of what parental alienation is, Dr. Schacht helped to write a proposal to the American Psychiatric Association. He wants a formal review of the concept, so that the psychiatric field, and judges, know whether the syndrome is diagnosable, or not.
The next revision of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual will not be published for at least a couple years.
Until then, Julia Wilson is trying to get the word out. She helped to organize a new support group for parents who may be going through a situation involving PAS.
Their first meeting is August 16. For more information about the group, you can call 342-7877, or e-mail pasaware@yahoo.com.
Email
Facebook
Google
Twitter
Favorites
More
Advertisement