The conference conclusions were divided into recommendations for theory and research on the one hand, and law reform, policy and professional practice on the other.
Our goals were to open channels of communication and begin a dialogue on the topic, and to develop guidelines with respect to reform of family law and therapeutic best practices.
If parents can cooperate and make healthy decisions in the best interest of their children during a time of crisis, they will do even better when the crisis has passed.
The goal of the conference will be to develop policies and guidelines for legislators, policymakers and professional practitioners with respect to best practices.
No matter its stripe, parental alienation is a serious form of child and parent abuse, and parental alienators represent a persistent danger to the lives of children.
Shared parenting ensures the continued involvement of mothers in the lives of their children, and this makes it just as much a women’s as a men’s rights issue.
The only effective means to combat parental alienation is to address it by means of a multi-faceted approach that involves fundamental changes to the divorce system.
One of the lesser-mentioned advantages of co-parenting after divorce is that it can strengthen children's relationships with both sets of grandparents.
Until professionals attain an in-depth understanding of the actual dynamics of parental alienation, cases of severe alienation will continue to be discounted.
As shared parenting has been recognized as a post-divorce parenting arrangement optimal to child development and well-being, its implementation should proceed without delay.
Because the added stress of holidays can lead to heightened parental conflict, it is vitally important that parents make a concerted effort to cooperate for their children's sake.
A written plan will help all family members to know what is expected of them and will be a valuable reference as time passes and family circumstances change.
Mistaken beliefs about the genesis of parental alienation and appropriate remedies have shaped both socio-legal policy and therapeutic and legal practice in ways that have failed to meet children’s needs during and after parental separation, and therefore are contrary to the principle of the best interest of the child.
A truly child-focused approach positions children’s needs at the forefront of “best interests” considerations, along with corresponding parental and social institutional responsibilities to these needs.
Many children firmly believe that they are the reason for the divorce. Further, most children secretly believe their parents will get back together, or wish that they would, and try to “fix” things and figure out ways of keeping them together.
These principles are offered in the spirit that parents have the strengths, capacities, and abilities to help children through the difficult transitions attendant to divorce.
These conclusions are seen to be groundbreaking as a consensus statement was produced by the world's leading researchers and practitioners in the field of co-parenting after divorce, which is intended to serve as a guide for family lawmakers, policymakers, and practitioners around the globe.
Just as we encourage parents in intact families to share care of their children, shared parenting should be the norm for post-divorce parenting plans for children of all ages.
The first international shared parenting organization has been established to develop evidence-based approaches to the needs and rights of children whose parents are living apart.
A paradigm shift is needed: the well-being of children as they define it must take precedence over judicial biases and preferences, professional self-interest, gender politics, the desire of a parent to remove the other from the child’s life, and the wishes of a parent who is found to be a danger to the child.
Verified by Psychology Today
