A/PROF CAROLYN QUADRIO

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SIX DEGREES OF ALIENATION PARENTING FAMILY
CONFLICT

• A/PROF CAROLYN QUADRIO
• School of Psychiatry
• University of NSW
• SHARED PARENTING ORDERS
• ADELAIDE, UNIVERSITY OF SA
• APRIL 2008

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OVERVIEW OF PRESENTATION

• Child trauma and abuse
• The spectrum of alienation
• Parenting patterns
• Case examples
• Breastfeeding
• Joint parenting considerations

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PERSONALITY DEVELOPMENT ATTACHMENT

• Personality develops from infant
  interaction with carer
• Critical interaction infants needs/capacities
  and empathic responsiveness of carer
  (not time)
• Long term mental health outcomes
• and early attachment/trauma

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CHILDHOOD TRAUMA ABUSE

• Is common
• Mostly familial/carers
• CSA 15-30
• Severe CPA 11
• Witnessing DV 14
• Psychological trauma?
• Family conflict/violence
• FLC cases expect higher rates

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CSA IS COMMON

• Epidemiological data worldwide
• 1 in 3 female1 in 4 male children
• 36 Australian women
• (Mazza and Dennerstein, 2001)
• Most CSA is unreported (80)
• Probably higher rates in FLC
• families more dysfunctional group

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Child Abuse Neglect (CAN)Australian data 2004/5

• Reports doubled last 5 years
• 700 new reports per day
• One new case/2 minutes
• Most abuse is intrafamilial
• Children in care ? 70 10 yrs

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DV IS COMMON UN DATA

• Most widespread and socially tolerated form of HR
  violation
• Often prelude to coercive sex
• Kills disables as many women as cancer gt MVAs
  malaria
• Single biggest health risk to Australian women of
  reproductive age (6.3B pa)
• 20-30 of marriages

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NEW LEGISLATIONPRESUMPTION EQUAL PARENTING

• Burden of proof on victim?
• Reality of CAN
• Prevalence of DV
• vs
• False allegations as strategy
• Breastfeeding as strategy

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ATTACHMENT FAMILY PATTERNS

• children attach to primary care figures
• not related to time
• children in long day care
• children in kibbutzim
• traditional families
• vs
• children attach in spite of abuse
• may even cling (traumatic attachment)

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ALIENATION SYNDROME
SYNDROME vs REALITY

• 90 allegations CSA in FLC are false
• PAS syndrome explains this process
• deliberate alienation
• (usually Mo)

• CSA common/false allegations not
• no scientific validity
• non-diagnostic
• no probative value
• dangerous assumption

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ASSESSING CHILD ABUSE/NEGLECT

• Only medical evidence conclusive but rare
• Most symptoms non-specific
• Anxiety, regression, sleep disturbance,
  nightmares, acting out, depression,
  hyperactivity, school problems
• Equally reflective of disturbance of divorce
  and/or ongoing post separation conflict

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INDICES OF SUSPICION

• Stereotyped statements
• Same words as parent
• Language gt development
• No contextual detail
• Minor issues in same vein
• Evoke sympathy eg CSS
• Privy to details of legal process

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MENTAL STATUS of ACCUSING PARENT

• Mental illness
• Children more exposed to abuse
• Personality disorder
• More prone to project BUT
• More likely to be victim of abuse
• Less able to protect children from abuse

14
MENTAL STATUS of ACCUSED PARENT

• Limited if any assistance determining issue
• Normal or no psychological disturbance
• No perpetrator profile but some concerns
• Previous violence
• DA issues

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ALIENATION AS PROCESS

• Alienation dynamic/process NOT syndrome
• Common in all divorcing families, esp FLC
• No specific association with CSA
• Can only be assessed in context of family

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SPECTRUM OF ALIENATION

• Motivation
• altruism
• self-interest
• malice
• Psychology
• normal
• anxious
• paranoid/deluded

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FIRST DEGREE

• Altruism/protection
• CSA is actual and/or
• sincerely believed
• Alienation solely to
• protect child

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SECOND DEGREE

• Hurt and/or depressed parent
• cannot conceal feelings
• children exquisitely sensitive
• alienation unintended

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THIRD DEGREE

• Immature/neurotic (gt malicious)
• message to children
• take care of me immature/dependent
• or
• dont blame me guilt prone depressive or
  passive aggressive adjustment

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FOURTH DEGREE

• Hurt, depressed, angry parent
• personality disorder more/less malicious
• unable/unwilling adequately
• to conceal feelings
• poor affect regulation (trauma,
• often CSA)
• potential for projection

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FIVE DEGREES

• Hurt/angry parent
• declare feelings to children
• recruit them as support
• alienation is intentional to
• break bond with other parent
• vengeful behaviour or
• welfare of children disregarded
• deluded (ie genuine belief)

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SIX DEGREES

• Wilful and intended alienation
• every effort to block contact
• malicious false allegations
• to gain advantage in FLC
• self-interest/manipulative
• sociopathic/malicious

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NEW LEGISLATION

• Joint parenting
• Property in common?
• Best interests of child paramount?

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PARENTING PRACTICES

• Intact families women do most of the childcare
  even if employed
• Rationale for altered pattern post separation?
• Most divorced families negotiate those in FLC
  the most acrimonious my data
• Joint parenting requires high degree of
  cooperation

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CHANGING PATTERNS

• Old style access Dad as Santa Claus

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CHANGING PATTERNS

• New style joint parenting Mr Mom

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CHANGED PATTERNCASE EXAMPLE

• Fa big business no psychiatric Dx
• Financial control domination
• Mo 9 years exclusive childcare anxious
• 3 children 9, 5, 18 mos (breastfed)
• Attachments equally strong and secure
• Fa now home based business
• Joint parenting? One plan for 3?
• Is change for the children or parent or ?

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Breastfeeding Parenting Orders

• best form of infant nutrition
• exclusive breastfeeding for first six months and
  continue first two years
• WHO UNICEF
• Australia Dietary Guidelines Federal Health
  AMA Dieticians Association Colleges
  Paediatrics Midwives

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Breastfeeding Benefits

• maternal recovery from pregnancy and childbirth
  contraception
• bonding and attachment
• improved vision
• psychomotor development
• prevention of chronic disease later in life
  breast and ovarian cancer, cardiovascular
  disease, obesity

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Risks of not breastfeeding

• gastrointestinal disease
• respiratory illnesses including asthma
• chronic otitis media
• sudden infant death syndrome.

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Shared Parenting Orders Breastfeeding

• separation affects breastfeeding
• contested cases unlikely to improve relationships
• not common pattern pre separation
• paramountcy of best interests of child?
• court orders for mothers to wean
• (Sweet Power, 2008)

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CASE EXAMPLE DELUSION?

• Mo anxious fears seem exaggerated
• Overvalued idea? Deluded? Folie a deux?
• Fa no psychiatric Dx
• Mo reports child has range of symptoms
• Childs disclosures to MoGMo (no one else)
• Court ordered supervision
• Mo continues to report abuse
• Supervisor alleged to be conspiring

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Examples Domestic Violence

• NESB
• Fa no psychiatric Dx
• Mo isolated and abused depression, PTSD
• Finally leaves w children
• Agreed contact Fa refuses to return
• Allegations to FLC Mo depressed, suicidal
• Orders limited contact w Mo 50/50 split

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QUALITY vs QUANTITY

• Quality of contact more important than time
• Joint custody negated by parental conflict, esp
  if children caught in ongoing conflict
• There is no one size fits all arrangement
• Risk of exposure to continuing conflict, DV, or
  abuse contact needs to be limited

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50/50 SHARED CARE

• Logistically complex, parents need to be
• organised, structured, plan ahead
• cooperative amicable rship, keep children out of
• child focused arrangements
• commitment by all to make it work
• family friendly work practices
• degree of financial independence, especially Mos
• a degree of paternal confidence
• Geography
• (B Smyth, 2005)