PC Nuts & Bolts II

Columbus AFCCSeptember 28, 2007

Debra K. Carter, Ph.D.www.theFICP.com

 Integrated Model of

Parenting Coordination

• Therapist Skills• Evaluator Skills• Mediator Skills• Educator Skills• Consultant Skills

Boundaries within PC Process

Establishing Boundaries PC Role & Responsibilities Rules of Engagement Maintaining Boundaries Boundary Violations

Cardinal Features of Parents in Hostile Custody Disputes

• Pattern of defensiveness• Rigidity in thinking• Lacking in ability to empathize

with others

Impact of Parental Conflict on Children’s Adjustment Following

Divorce • Effects of exposure to Chronic Parental Conflict

– Insecurity and Agitation

– Shame and Guilt

– Helplessness

– Fear of Abuse

– Less Parental Involvement

– Rejection

Two Types of Inter-actional Impasse

• Type I:– Couples maintain highly positive,

idealized view of each other– Deeply enmeshed– Cycle through repeated reconciliations

that dissipate into bitter disappointments– Enormously ambivalent about the

separation

Type I Impasse - Children

• The divorce is never final, and their reconciliation fantasies are continually fueled.

• Often neglected by their parents because the parents are absorbed with each other.

• Often the focus of the post-divorce disputes as an extension of the parents’ smoldering passions for one another.

Type II Inter-actional Impasse

• Extremely negative, polarized view of each other for which there is no evidence in current reality.

• View each other as “crazy and mentally disturbed” or as “morally reprehensible monsters.”

• Resist their children’s contact with the other parent.

Type II Inter-actional Impasse (cont.)

• They mirror each other in a victim stance, each viewing the other as the persecutor.

• They avoid contact.

• They refuse to communicate directly and use others as spokespersons.

Type II Interactional Impasse - Children

• Receive overt or covert messages that the other parent is “bad, immoral, or neglectful.”

• Are often prohibited from seeing the non-residential parent.

• Transitions between parental homes are lonely and frightening.

Interventions in Type I (Ambivalent Separating)

• Point out dichotomy between their views and the facts.

• Communication about children without emotional re-engagement.

• Re-direct any interaction that alludes to a shared private experience.

• Discourage sharing of personal information.• Encourage arrangements that require minimal

contact between them.

Interventions in Type II Impasse

• Perceived experience of being suddenly and unexpectedly left.

• Separation involves inordinate degrees of humiliation, anger, defeat, guilt, and fear.

• Period following the actual separation is marked by desperate, unusual, and atypical behavior that seems quite irrational.

Referral for Adjunct Services

Psychotherapy Anger Management Impulse Control Intervention Parenting Class “Fitness” Evaluation EMDR Reunification Therapy Preparation for Step-Parenting/Blending Families Post-divorce check-ups for children

When & How to Refer for Support Services

• Establishing a Team• Coordinating a Team• Communication between Team Members• Measuring Effectiveness

Thorny Ethical Issues

• Dual Roles• Appearance of Bias• Mandatory Reporting• Duty to Warn• Privacy• Practicing Outside Area of Expertise• Financial Arrangements

Special Circumstances

• ADA requirements• Accommodations for disabilities• Cultural issues

– Awareness– Impact– Interventions

Trouble Shooting

When to Request a Case Management or Status Conference

When to Request Removal as PC

Professional Consultation with Colleagues 

Protection for Professionals

Physical Safety Professional Liability Handling Threats of a Lawsuit Handling Threats of a Professional Board

Complaint Know the Professional Standards &

Guidelines for your Profession HIPPA