Social policy for child custody: A multidisciplinary framework.

Felner, Robert D.; Farber, Stephanie S.

doi:10.1111/j.1939-0025.1980.tb03295.x

Cited by 8 publications

(11 citation statements)

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“…Some of the literature that I was able to identify through a computerized search was written to help the family therapist understand aspects of the law and court procedure in order to be better prepared for an encounter with the judicial system in practice (Bernstein, 1982; Nichols, 1980; Ruback, 1982). Some dealt with the ethical standpoint of care professionals (Felner & Farber, 1980; Zaidel, 1993) and family therapists (Furlong, 1989) in relation to the Courts, especially in the context of adversarial proceedings. Felner and Farber advise care professionals “not to be so naive as to assume that they share the goals and paradigms of the legal profession.” This, they argue, necessitates an understanding on our part of the way in which lawyers and the law operates, if we are to be able to influence the Court's decision making in the child's best interest.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Marital Conflict by Proxy After Father Kills Mother: The Family Therapist As an Expert Witness in Court

Kaplan¹

1998

Family Process

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The father killing the mother leaves the children effectively without parents. The extended family from both sides will often intervene to offer a home for the children, or at least to have a say in what arrangements are made for the children and how they are to be brought up. Intensely competitive and hostile feelings between the opposing sets of relatives are commonly aroused, and the children may be caught up in a battle reminiscent of the conflict between their parents, which culminated in the death of their mother. I and my colleagues have, as a team, seen more than 300 children who have lost one parent at the hands of the other, and we have been involved in subsequent custody battles as expert witnesses. Based on this experience and using this context as an example, the issues for the family therapist as expert witness in adversarial Court proceedings are presented. A case is described that illustrates the theoretical exposition--including the effectiveness of family therapy from the witness box.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Marital Conflict by Proxy After Father Kills Mother: The Family Therapist As an Expert Witness in Court

Kaplan¹

1998

Family Process

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“…There is little indication that a psychologists' "expert" opinion about the ultimate legal issue offers the jury anything more than a thoughtful layperson's personal, ethical, ideological, or value-laden opinion and belief about how such a legal issue should be resolved. Despite the fact the federal rules of evidence explicitly sanction expert testimony that embraces opinions about the ultimate issue in contention, the limitations concerning psychological expert testimony in this regard have not gone unnoticed by some scholars (see, e.g., Felner & Farber, 1980;Mnookin, 1975;Morse, 1982) and the courts. For example, in United States v. Brawner (1972), a landmark decision that changed the nature of the insanity defense at the time, the court complained that the mental health professionals who served as expert witnesses in the trial below issued "ethical and legal conclusions.., in a domain that is properly not theirs but the jury's" (pp.…”

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confidence: 99%

Psychologists and the judicial system: Broader perspectives.

Bersoff¹

1986

Law and Human Behavior

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This article traces the rise, fall, and current ambivalence in the use of social science data and psychological experts by the legal system. Several reasons are discussed for the less than perfect "marriage" between psychology and the law: normative philosophy of constitutional adjudication; overriding principles of the rules of evidence; irrelevancy to the courts of much of social science research; seduction of psychologists by attorneys who persuade experts to testify as advecates for a particular position rather than as objective scientists. These problems are placed in a legal and ethical framework and suggestions for remediation of these problems are offered.

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“…1984). One of the most complex and controversial of these efforts involves child custody placement in marital dissolution (Felner & Farber. 1980;Reppucci.…”

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confidence: 99%

“…1980). More recently, psychologists have expanded their purview to include the exploration of alternative approaches to conflict resolution and the development of new frameworks to enhance the interaction between the family and the legal system (Felner & Farber, 1980;Felner & Terre, 1987).…”

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Child custody resolution: A study of social science involvement and impact.

Felner¹,

Rowlison²,

Farber³

et al. 1987

Professional Psychology: Research and Practice

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To explore the use of mental health professional expertise in the legal system, legal professionals' sources of social science information, and the legal profession's perspectives on the appropriate roles of mental health professionals in the process, we solicited information from attorneys and judges on (a) the extent to which they actively seek the involvement of mental health professionals in child custody cases, (b) the factors that influence such involvement, and (c) the degree to which these attitudes and practices are influenced by social science data or theory. Among the most sinking features of these results was the report by the overwhelming majority of legal professionals that they did not consider either social science dala or mental health professionals' involvement or recommendations in child custody cases as critical to their practice of family law. Specifically, mental health participation was rarely solicited, and when it was. this decision rested primarily on the paradigmatic regularities of the legal system or practical needs of the case rather on a view that such involvement was central to the client's or child's mental health. The implications of these findings for collaboration between the mental health and legal disciplines in the area of family policy are discussed.As part of the growing commitment to preventing emotional dysfunction through social change (Albee, 1985). mental health professionals have sought to become participants in an ever-increasing range of efforts to shape legal policies and processes (e.g., Reppucci, Wcilhorn, Mulvey, & Monahan. ROBERT D. FELNER, PhD, is professor of psychology at the University oflllinois at Urbana-Champaign. His research interests are in primary prevention, life transitions, stress and coping in children and families, and child custody. He is an editor of Preventive Psychology. Theory. Research and Praam' (published 1983). RICHARD T. ROWLISON. MA, is a PhD student in the Clinical/ Community Psychology Program at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. His research interests arc in the areas of stress and coping and prevention programs for at-risk adolescents. STEPHANII S. FARBER, PhD, is in private clinical practice in New Haven, Connecticut. Her research interests focus on stress and coping in children and families. JUDITH PRIMAVERA, MA, is a PhD student at Yale University and a staff psychologist at Bridgeport Child Guidance Center, Bridgeport. Connecticut. THOMAS A BISHOP, Esq.. is a practicing attorney and former president of the Family Law Section of the Connecticut Bar Association. THE AUTHORS THANK the Family Law Section of the Connecticut Bar Association for their support for this project, and Lisa Terre for her assistance in data analysis and editing.

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Social policy for child custody: A multidisciplinary framework.

Cited by 8 publications

References 10 publications

Marital Conflict by Proxy After Father Kills Mother: The Family Therapist As an Expert Witness in Court

Marital Conflict by Proxy After Father Kills Mother: The Family Therapist As an Expert Witness in Court

Psychologists and the judicial system: Broader perspectives.

Child custody resolution: A study of social science involvement and impact.

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