Parental alienation refers to behaviors that may be considered damaging to a child’s emotional and mental well-being. This rather contentious term may arise in high conflict divorce and child custody cases, particularly when one parent is believed to be influencing a child to become alienated from the other parent by constantly making negative comments about him or her.
Parental alienation can have a substantial and long-lasting impact on a child’s relationship with one or even both parents, as it is the child who will miss out on a potentially healthy, productive and loving relationship with the other parent.
Unfortunately, parental alienation is an issue that arises all too often in family disputes between parents, playing a role in 11 to 15 percent of all divorce and child custody cases in the United States. If you have reason to believe that parental alienation is a factor in your divorce or child custody case, contact a Phoenix child custody attorney from Goldman Law, LLC as soon as possible.
How Parental Alienation Occurs
Often times, parental alienation results from various efforts and strategies used by one parent in order to get a child to distance himself or herself from the other parent. Among the common tactics used include:
- Constantly making belittling or disparaging comments to a child about the other parent
- Forbidding any discussions to be made about the other parent
- Limiting the child’s contact with the parent
- Removing any photographs or other reminders of the other parent from the home
- Compelling a child to reject the other parent or to choose one parent over the other
- Other actions and efforts to attempt to remove the other parent from the child’s life
Parental alienation is not to be mistaken as a term used for situations of domestic violence, child abuse, or other situations where a child distances him or herself from an abusive parent. Instead, it is more common in situations where one parent has sole custody or when the other parent has limited parenting time with a child.
Some signs of parental alienation in the home include a child that:
- Expressed hate for the other parent, even if no abuse has occurred
- Has unsubstantiated or unreasonable reason for hating the other parent
- Claims that all negative feelings towards the other parent are the child’s own feelings
- Shows a lack of guilt for pushing away or hating the other parent
Contact the Phoenix Child Custody Attorneys at Goldman Law, LLC
The most effective way to prevent parental alienation is by recognizing the signs early on. If you have reason to believe that your former spouse is using parental alienation strategies on your child in order to damage your relationship, consult with an attorney as soon as possible.
Call Goldman Law, LLC at (602) 698-5520 or email us using the contact form on this page to schedule a professional case evaluation and learn more about your rights. We serve clients in Phoenix and all throughout Arizona.
