Clinical ratings of parenting capacity and rorschach protocols of custody-disputing parents: An Exploratory study

Journal of Child Custody

Volumn 2, Issue 1-2, 2005, Pages 159-178

  Johnston, Janet R ^a   Walters, Marjorie G ^b   Olesen, Nancy W ^b  

^a SAN JOSE STATE UNIVERSITY   (United States)

^b Clinical Psychologists in Private Practice Specializing in Child Custody Evaluations   (United States)

Author keywords

Child abuse; Child custody evaluations; Parental alienation; Parenting capacity; Personality testing; Role reversal

Indexed keywords

EID: 31544471547     PISSN: 15379418     EISSN: 1537940X     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1300/J190v02n01_09     Document Type: Article

References (60)

1. Ackerman, M. J., and Ackerman, M. C. (1997). Custody evaluation practices: A survey of experienced professionals (revisited). Professional Psychology: Research and Practice, 28, 137-145.
2. Ackerman, M., and Schoendorf, K. (1992). ASPECT: Ackerman-Schoendorf scales for parent evaluation ofcustody-Manual. Los Angeles: Western Psychological Services.
3. American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. (1997). Practice parameters for child custody evaluations. Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, 36, 57S-68S.
4. American Psychological Association. (1994). Guidelines for child custody evaluations in divorce proceedings. American Psychologist, 49, 677-680.
5. Association of Family and Conciliation Courts. (1994). Model standards of practice for child custody evaluation. Family and Conciliation Courts Review, 32, 504-513.
6. Austin, W. G. (2000). Assessing the credibility in allegations of marital violence in the high conflict child custody case. Family and Conciliation Courts Review, 38, 186-201.
7. Austin, W. G. (2002). Guidelines for utilizing collateral sources of information in child custody evaluations. Family Court Review, 40, 177-184.
8. Bagby, R. M., Nicholson, R. A., Buis, T., Radovanovic, H., and Fidler, B. J. (1999). Defensive responding on the MMPI-2 in family custody and access evaluations. Psychological Assessment, 11, 24-28.
9. Barber, B. K., and Harmon, E. L. (2002). Violating the self: Parental psychological control of children and adolescents. In B. K. Barber (Ed.), Intrusive parenting (pp. 15-52). Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.
10. Bathurst, K., Gottfried, A. W., and Gottfried, A. E. (1997). Normative data for the MMPI-2 in child custody litigation. Psychological Assessment, 9, 205-211.
11. Bow, J. N., and Quinnell, F. A. (2001). Psychologists’ current practices and procedures in child custody evaluations: Five years after American Psychological Guidelines. Professional Psychology: Research and Practice, 32, 261-268.
12. Bow, J. N., and Quinnell, F. A. (2002). A critical review of child custody evaluation reports. Family Court Review, 40, 164-176.
13. Bricklin, B. (1989). Perception of relationships test manual. Furlong, PA: Village Publishing.
14. Bricklin, B. (1990). Bricklin perceptual scales manual. Furlong, PA: Village Publishing.
15. Bricklin, B., and Elliott, G. (1991). Parent perception of child profile manual. Furlong, PA: Village Publishing.
16. Brodzinsky, D. M. (1993). On the use and misuse of psychological tests in child custody evaluations. Professional Psychology: Research and Practice, 24, 213-219.
17. Chase, N. D. (1999). Parentification: An overview of theory, research, and societal issues. In N. D. Chase (Ed.), Burdened children (pp. 3-33). Thousand Oaks, CA, Sage.
18. Exner Jr., J. E. (1991). The Rorschach: A comprehensive system. Volume 2: Interpretation (2nd ed.). New York: John Wiley and Sons.
19. Exner Jr., J. E. (2002). A new nonpatient sample for the Rorschach Comprehensive System: A progress report. Journal of Personality Assessment, 78, 391-404.
20. Gardner, R. A. (1998). The parental alienation syndrome (2nd ed.). Creskill, NJ: Creative Therapeutics.
21. Gould, J. W. (1999a). Scientifically crafted child custody evaluations. Part one: A model for interdisciplinary collaboration in the development of psycholegal questions guiding court-ordered child custody evaluations. Family and Conciliation Courts Review, 37, 64-73.
22. Gould, J. W. (1999b). Scientifically crafted child custody evaluations. Part two: Apar- adigm for forensic evaluation of child custody determination. Family and Conciliation Courts Review, 37, 159-178.
23. Gould, J. W. (2004). Evaluating the probative value of child custody evaluations: A guide for forensic mental health professionals. Journal of Child Custody, 1,77-96.
24. Gould, J. W., and Stahl, P. M. (2000). The art and science of child custody evaluations: Integrating clinical and forensic mental health models. Family and Conciliation Courts Review, 38, 392-414.
25. Greenberg, L. R., Martindale, D. A., Gould, J. W., and Gould-Saltman, D. J. (2004). Ethical issues in child custody and dependency cases: Enduring principles and emerging challenges. Journal of Child Custody, 1, 7-30.
26. Grossman, L. S., Wasyliw, O. E., Benn, A. F., and Gyoerkoe, K. L. (2002). Can sex offenders who minimize on the MMPI conceal psychopathology on the Rorschach? Journal of Personality Assessment, 78, 484-501.
27. Hagen, M. A., and Castagna, N. (2001). The real numbers: Psychological testing in custody evaluations. Professional Psychology: Research and Practice, 32, 269-271.
28. Hollingshead, A. B., and Redlich, F. C. (1958). Social class and mental illness: A community study. New York: Wiley.
29. Hysjulien, C., Wood, B., and Benjamin, G. A. H. (1994). Child custody evaluations: A review of methods used in litigation and alternative dispute resolution. Family and Conciliation Courts Review, 32, 466-489.
30. Johnston, J. R. (2003). Parental alignments and rejection: An empirical study of alienation in children of divorce. Journal of the American Academy of Psychiatry and Law, 31, 158-70.
31. Johnston, J. R., and Campbell, L. E. G. (1988). Impasses of divorce: The dynamics and resolution of family conflict. New York: Free Press.
32. Johnston, J. R., Gans Walters, M., and Olesen, N. W. (2004, June). The psychological functioning of alienated children in custody disputing families: An exploratory study. Paper presented at the Vulnerable Child Symposium, American Psychoanalytic Association Meetings, San Francisco, CA.
33. Johnston, J. R., Lee, S., Olesen, N. W., and Walters, M. G. (2005). Allegations and substantiations of abuse in custody disputing families. Family Court Review.
34. Johnston, J. R., Walters, M., and Olesen, N. W. (in press). Is it alienating parenting, role reversal or child abuse? An empirical study of children’s rejection of a parent in child custody disputes. Journal of Emotional Abuse.
35. Keilin, W. G., and Bloom, L. J. (1986). Child custody evaluation practices: A survey of Experienced professionals. Professional Psychology: Research and Practice, 17, 338-346.
36. Kelly, J. B., and Johnston, J. R. (2001). The alienated child: A reformulation of parental alienation syndrome. Family Court Review, 39, 249-266.
37. Kirkland, K. (2002). The epistemology of child custody evaluations: The value of Austin’s convergent multimodal approach. Family Court Review, 40, 185-189.
38. LaFortune, K. A., and Carpenter, B. N. (1998). Custody evaluations: A survey of mental health professionals. Behavioral Sciences and the Law, 16, 207-224.
39. Medoff, D. (2003). The scientific basis of psychological testing: Considerations following Daubert, Kumho, and Joiner. Family Court Review, 41, 199-213.
40. Meloy, J. R., Hansen, T. L., and Weiner, I. B. (1997). Authority of the Rorschach: Legal citations during the past 50 years. Journal of Personality Assessment, 69, 53-62.
41. Meyer, G. (2000). On the science of Rorschach research. Journal of Personality Assessment, 75, 46-81.
42. Meyer, G. J., Finn, S. E., Eyde, L. D., Kay, G. G., Moreland, K. L., Dies, R. R. et al. (2001). Psychological testing and psychological assessment: A review of evidence and issues. American Psychologist, 56, 128-165.
43. Meyer, G. J., Hilsenroth, M. J., Baxter, D., Exner Jr., J. E., Christopher Fowler, J., Piers, C. C. et al. (2002). An examination of interrater reliability for scoring the Rorschach Comprehensive System in eight data sets. Journal of Personality Assessment, 78, 219-274.
44. Nelson, D. A., and Crick, N. R. (2002). Parental psychological control: Implications for childhood physical and relational aggression. In B. K. Barber (Ed.), Intrusive parenting (pp. 161-190). Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.
45. Otto, R. K., Edens, J. F., and Barcus, E. H. (2000). The use of psychological testing in child custody evaluations. Family and Conciliation Courts Review, 38, 312-340.
46. Posthuma, A. B., and Harper, J. F. (1998). Comparison of MMPI-2 responses of child custody and personal injury litigants. Professional Psychology: Research and Practice, 29, 437-443.
47. Quinnell, F. A., and Bow, J. N. (2001). Psychological tests used in child custody evaluations. Behavioral Sciences and the Law, 19, 491-501.
48. Roseby, V. (1995). Uses of psychological testing in a child-focused approach to child custody evaluations. Family Law Quarterly, 29, 97-110.
49. Schaffer, T. W., Erdberg, P., and Haroian, J. (1999). Current nonpatient data for the Rorschach, WAIS-R, and MMPI-2. Journal of Personality Assessment, 73, 305-316.
50. Sroufe, L. A., Duggal, S., Weinfield, N., and Carlson, E. (2000). Relationships, development, and psychopathology. In A. J. Sameroff, M. Lewis, and S. Miller (Eds.), Handbook of developmental psychopathology (2nd ed., pp. 75-91). New York: Kluwer Academic/Plenum.
51. Stahl, P. M. (1994). Conducting child custody evaluations: A comprehensive guide. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
52. Strong, D. R., Greene, R. L., Hoppe, C., Johnston, T., and Olesen, N. (1999). Taxometric analysis of impression management and self-deception on the MMPI-2 in child- custody litigants. Journal of Personality Assessment, 73, 1-18.
53. Teti, D. M., and Candelaria, M. A. (2002). Parenting competence. In M. H. Borstein (Ed.), Handbook of parenting (Vol. 4, pp. 149-180). Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.
54. Valente-Torre, L., Cavani, P., and Brusca, C. (1987). Separation or divorce: Analyse de l’agressivite de patients qui se disputent la charge des enfants [English translation]. Psychologie Medicale, 19, 511-513.
55. Viglione, Jr., D. J. (1996). Data and issues to consider in reconciling self-report and the Rorschach. Journal of Personality Assessment, 67, 579-587.
56. Wallerstein, J. S., and Kelly, K. B. (1980). Surviving the breakup: How children and parents cope with divorce. New York: Basic Books.
57. Walters, M. G., Olesen, N. W., and Lee, M. S. (2004). What can the Rorschachs of child custody disputants tell us? Unpublished Technical Report, available from the authors.
58. Warshak, R. A. (2003). Bringing sense to parental alienation: A look at the dispute and the evidence. Family Law Quarterly, 37, 273-301.
59. Waxler, Z. W., Duggal, S., and Gruber, R. (2002). Parenting and psychopathology. In M. H. Borstein (Ed.), Handbook of parenting (Vol. 4, pp. 295-327). Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.
60. Wood, J. M., Nezworksi, M. T., Stejskal, W. J., Garven, S., and West, S. G. (2001). Advancing scientific discourse in controversy surrounding the Comprehensive System for the Rorschach: A rejoinder to Meyer (2000). Journal of Personality Assessment, 76, 369-378.