The Art and Science of Child Custody Evaluations Review

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(More customer reviews)Back in the dark ages, a psychologist hired by one parent or the other in a child custody case could just waltz into court and give a subjective clinical opinion. Thankfully, while such practices may still occur here and there, it is no longer the norm. Such a psychologist might be legally barred due to inadequate training or experience, or might face legal action by the other parent. Back in 1998 (and revised last year), Jonathan Gould wrote a really helpful manual called Conducting Scientifically Crafted Child Custody Evaluations, Second Edition, to help custody evaluators avoid the many pitfalls and landmines in this litigious subfield of forensic psychology. Now, he has teamed up with fellow expert David A. Martindale to bring us even more of the latest information and advice in this rapidly evolving area.
The authors focus both on the law and on the clinical practicalities. Clear and well-written chapters explore ethics and bias, child interviewing, child development research, assessing parents, child sexual abuse allegations, domestic violence, and child alienation. The authors carefully explain the primary legal standard in child custody work, "The Best Interests of the Child" standard. Of special use to the practitioner, the appendix contains sample letters and statements of understanding, all with permission to freely photocopy.
The overall messages here are ones worth repeating: Know the law, know the science, remain unbiased, and be humble. This updated reference book will be useful not only to child custody evaluators but also to attorneys and to students of forensic psychology.
For those of you interested in learning more, another good resource is Ackerman and Kane's Psychological Experts In Divorce Actions, which summarizes empirical data on child custody evaluation practices. It was published in 2005, but the publisher puts out annual supplements summarizing new research.

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Addressing key topics in child custody evaluation, this book provides essential knowledge for practitioners who want to meet the highest standards for both scientific validity and legal admissibility. The authors are leading experts who describe the latest data-based approaches to understanding and assessing relevant child, parent, and family factors. Going beyond the basics, the book gives in-depth attention to challenging, frequently encountered issues, such as how to evaluate allegations of domestic violence, child sexual abuse, and child alienation. Also covered are the complexities of interviewing children effectively and working in the adversarial forensic context. A user-friendly appendix contains sample letters and statements of understanding, with permission to photocopy.

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