One-in-four children involved in a divorce undergoes Parental Alienation Syndrome (PAS), where the custodial parent incessantly tries to turn the child against the other parent, suggests a new book, Marital Conflicts, Divorce, and Children's Development. PAS was first defined in the 1980s by scientist Richard Gardner of Columbia University. Men are usually the target parent, since in the majority of cases the mother has custody of the child. "In most cases, the process is very subtle, the custodial parent stating such things as 'if I just told you some more things about your father/mother...', or by making the child feel sorry for 'abandoning' every time he or she visits the alienated parent," explained author Rosario Cortés Arboleda.
The book notes that very often, children not only reject their father, but also his family and close friends. Grandparents, uncles and aunts, cousins, and the new partner of the non-custodial parent are also affected by this syndrome, and children undergoing PAS can even "expel them from their life."
Among other symptoms, Cortés points out that children tend to find continual justifications for the alienating parent's attitude. They denigrate the target parent, relate negative feelings unambivalently towards that parent, deny being influenced by anyone, feel no guilt for denigrating the alienated parent, or recount imaginary events which were not experienced but rather came from listening to others.
According to Cortés, PAS occurs most frequently in cases where parents are involved in divorce litigation, while it is not usual when the decision to seek divorce is mutual. "The family must be provided with a family-mediation programme for equal treatment of all members affected by this problem, which is increasingly more frequent," she said in conclusion.
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Alarming Findings From Divorce Studies
Source: University of Granada
