Family law issues in family therapy practice

Abstract

The American Journal of Family Therapy is pleased to innaugurate this new section with the intent of being at the cutting edge of the interface of the interrelationship of family law and family therapy. We introduce this endeavor with several articles on child custody-an arena of crucial concern in both disciplines. One article is a summary of child custody laws extant throu hout the United States. to commend it psychologically and legally. The third item, in keeping with the theme, is a speculative fable about joint custody written by a matrimonial attorney who practices family mediation and who has training as a family therapist. It captures the tenor of the times. The second article discusses a model for child custody ev a f uations, which has much     

Divorce mediation and its emotional impact on the couple and their children

Abstract

Only recently have stage of development concepts been applied to the process of divorce. Formulations about continuum of feelings, tasks to be accomplished, ordinary emotional fluctuations, and challenges to be mastered began to appear in the literature only in the past two decades (Bohannan, 1970; Froiland & Hozman, 1977; Kaslow, 1981b; 1983; Kessler, 1975). Nonetheless, when one is undertaking either divorce therapy or divorce mediation with a couple, it is vital to ascertain such life cycle factors as: 1) where each is in his or her individual life cycle development in terms of chronological age, emotional maturity, cognitive functioning, career status and aims, and child rearing; 2) how long the couple had been together, what are the personalities and ages of the children, the nature of the couple's prior relationship to each other, the extended family's response to the imminent divorce, the importance ascribed to independencelfreedom vs. sharing one's life and being concerned about a partner's wishes, the level of intimacy sought and reached, the nature and frequency of arguments, the extent of ennui and disillusionment, the perceived friendship and career opportunities beyond the current marriage and job, and the economic circumstances; and 3) if they have already decided to divorce or where they are in this emotional and legal process—predivorce, during divorce, or postdivorce?

It is important that the point of therapeutic entry and the selection of treatment strategies or the approach in divorce mediation be contingent upon etching a clear and accurate picture of their individual and couple identity, rhythms, intrapsychic integration and interpersonal resources, and the life cycle stage in these intertwined aspects of living.     

The Emotionality Activity Sociability Temperament Survey: Factor analysis and temporal stability in a longitudinal cohort

We investigated Buss and Plomin’s Emotionality Activity Sociability (EAS) Temperament Survey for Children, used to assess temperament. Temperament is believed to comprise stable traits that change little over time. We examined stability of EAS temperament in the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children, in which 7429 mothers completed the EAS when their children were 3, 5 and 6 years old. Factor analysis was conducted at each time point, and stability over time was assessed using correlation and mixed effects regression modelling, accounting for differences within and between individuals. A four-factor model provided the best fit, with 19–20 of the 20 items loading onto the dimensions predicted by Buss and Plomin. Test–retest correlations ranged from 0.52–0.64 (3–5 years), 0.59–0.74 (5–6 years) and 0.46–0.58 (3–6 years). Mixed effects regression modelling suggested good stability over time: differences between, rather than within, individuals accounted for between 69% and 82% of the variance. This study demonstrates the stability of temperament over time, a vital pre-requisite to investigating childhood temperament as a predictor of outcomes.     

Being moved by meaningfulness: appraisals of surpassing internal standards elicit being moved by relationships and achievements

ABSTRACT

People can be moved and overwhelmed, a phenomenon typically accompanied by goose-bumps and tears. We argue that these feelings of being moved are not limited to situations that are appraised as pro-social but elicited when someone surpasses an internal standard. In line with these predictions, people were moved by relationships and success (Study 1), by reunion, separation, success and failure (Study 2) and by social, environmental and sports achievements (Study 3). In all three studies, the elicitation of these feelings was partially mediated by appraisals of surpassing social or achievement standards. In line with this, ratings of meaningfulness were closely associated with feelings of being moved and moving stimuli elicited behavioural intentions such as spending time with family and friends, helping others and/or achieving something in life. Thus, moving situations may remind us about what we perceive as meaningful and thereby help us to act accordingly.     

Forgiveness as a mediator of the relationship between PTSD and hostility in survivors of childhood abuse

This paper argues that emotional inferences about characters in a text are not as specific as previously assumed (DeVega, Diaz, & Leon, 1997; DeVega, Leon, & Diaz 1996; Gernsbacher, Goldsmith, & Robertson, 1992; Gernsbacher, Hollada, & Robertson, 1998; Gernsbacher & Robertson, 1992). The emotional information inferred by readers does not differentiate between emotions that are similar, though not identical. In both Experiments 1 and 2, participants read the stories used by Gernsbacher et al. (1992). Results from Experiment 1 (off-line) show that participants judged several emotions consistent with the same story. In Experiment 2 (on-line), participants took longer to read target sentences containing emotions mismatching the stories, but there was no difference between target sentences containing different matching emotions as determined by Experiment 1. Results from Experiments 1 and 2 suggest that the emotional information readers infer from the stories is too broad to determine a specific emotion. The results are consistent with the idea that a general emotional response is evoked, which is compatible with one or more specific emotions.     

Reduced specificity of autobiographical memory as a moderator of the relationship between daily hassles and depression

Autobiographical memory biases are potential cognitive vulnerability factors for depression, with recent research highlighting the potential importance of accompanying high levels of life stress. Using a prospective design, the current study examined the role of autobiographical memory performance, both reduced specificity and propensity towards categoric memories, as moderators of the relationship between life stress and depression in a non-clinical college sample. Findings suggest that an increased propensity towards categoric recall emerged as a vulnerability factor for future depressive symptoms, with this vulnerability not being dependent upon the presence of high levels of life stress. In contrast, while reduced autobiographical memory specificity did not emerge as a vulnerability factor alone, it did emerge as a moderator of the relationship between chronic daily hassles and depression. These findings highlight the potential importance of both propensity towards categoric recall and reduced specificity of autobiographical memory as vulnerability factors for the experience of future depressive symptoms.     

Angry expressions strengthen the encoding and maintenance of face identity representations in visual working memory

Visual working memory (WM) for face identities is enhanced when faces express negative versus positive emotion. To determine the stage at which emotion exerts its influence on memory for person information, we isolated expression (angry/happy) to the encoding phase (Experiment 1; neutral test faces) or retrieval phase (Experiment 2; neutral study faces). WM was only enhanced by anger when expression was present at encoding, suggesting that retrieval mechanisms are not influenced by emotional expression. To examine whether emotional information is discarded on completion of encoding or sustained in WM, in Experiment 3 an emotional word categorisation task was inserted into the maintenance interval. Emotional congruence between word and face supported memory for angry but not for happy faces, suggesting that negative emotional information is preferentially sustained during WM maintenance. Our findings demonstrate that negative expressions exert sustained and beneficial effects on WM for faces that extend beyond encoding.