A Multidisciplinary Perspective on the Role, Functions, and Effectiveness of Parenting Coordination. (27th July 2020)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Saini, Michael; Belcher‐Timme, Robin; Nau, Daniel
• Is Part Of: Family court review. Volume 58:Number 3(2020:Jul.)
• Page Start: 658
• Page End: 672
• Publication Date: 2020-07-27
• Subjects: Conflict Resolution -- Cross‐Discipline -- Experiences -- Family Law -- Legal Professionals -- Mental Health Professionals -- Parenting Coordination -- Separation and Divorce -- Survey; Domestic relations courts -- United States -- Periodicals; 346.7301505
• DOI: 10.1111/fcre.12506
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 1531-2445

Abstract

Abstract : Based on a survey conducted in 2018 in collaboration with the Association of Family and Conciliation Courts' (AFCC) Task Force on Parenting Coordination, this paper explores issues related to the process and perceived outcomes of parenting coordination for families post separation and divorce. The views expressed emerge from a diverse and multidisciplinary sample ( n = 289) from legal, mental health, and conflict resolution backgrounds. Almost half of all participants (46%) were mental health professionals (psychologist, psychiatrist, social worker), followed by attorneys (28%), family mediators (17%) and judges (5%). Over half of all participants identified as a parenting coordinator (PC) (53%). Based on the results, participants had the highest level of agreement that the goal of parenting coordination should be to assist in sheltering the children from parental conflict and to help the coparents reduce interparental conflict. Participants assigned greater success to parenting coordination when there was demonstration that coparenting conflict decreased. Several differences were noted among professional disciplines and specifically between legal and mental health professionals. Mental health professionals rated higher on the effectiveness of PCs to help children adjust and limit their involvement in the parental conflict, while legal professionals focused on PCs' ability to help families resolve legal disputes. The implications of the results are discussed, including how best to measure the success of parenting coordination and to prioritize outcomes related to the success of parenting coordination across disciplines to create greater consistency in the field. Abstract : Key Points for the Family Court Community: The role and functions of parenting coordination varies across jurisdictions. There remains a lack of agreement on the use of standard and objective outcomes to measure the effectiveness of parenting coordination. There are various types of interventions and approaches used by PCs to assist families post separation and divorce. PCs with mental health backgrounds tend to focus on helping children adjust to parental conflict, while PCs who are legal professionals are more likely to focus on the PCs' ability to help families resolve legal disputes. Despite recent calls to involve children within the parenting coordination process, children largely remain excluded from the process. The current study is important because it responds to the calls for empirical evidence to examine the process and outcomes related to parenting coordination and demonstrates the need for additional research.