ABSTRACT
Forensic mental health professionals are frequently asked to evaluate the parenting skills of divorcing parents because the court seeks help in determining the custody, visitation, and parenting time arrangements for the children. When one of the parents is impaired, the court wants to know the way to help the children have a good relationship with that parent and keep the children safe. There is little empirical research to answer such questions. In this article, the authors describe their methodology for providing useful clinical information to the court to help guide their decisions regarding visitation with impaired parents.
Subject(s)
Child Custody/legislation & jurisprudence , Child of Impaired Parents/legislation & jurisprudence , Mentally Ill Persons/legislation & jurisprudence , Parent-Child Relations , Alcoholism/diagnosis , Alcoholism/psychology , Child , Child Welfare/legislation & jurisprudence , Child Welfare/psychology , Child of Impaired Parents/psychology , Child, Preschool , Disability Evaluation , Expert Testimony/legislation & jurisprudence , Family Conflict/legislation & jurisprudence , Family Conflict/psychology , Female , Humans , Infant , Judicial Role , Male , Mental Competency/legislation & jurisprudence , Mental Competency/psychology , Mentally Ill Persons/psychology , Mood Disorders/diagnosis , Mood Disorders/psychology , Parenting/psychology , Personality Disorders/diagnosis , Personality Disorders/psychology , Psychotic Disorders/diagnosis , Psychotic Disorders/psychology , Social Support , Spouse Abuse/legislation & jurisprudence , Spouse Abuse/psychology , Substance-Related Disorders/diagnosis , Substance-Related Disorders/psychology , Young AdultABSTRACT
Recent research-in which subjects were studied longitudinally from childhood until adulthood-has started to clarify how a child's environment and genetic makeup interact to create a violent adolescent or adult. For example, male subjects who were born with a particular allele of the monoamine oxidase A gene and also were maltreated as children had a much greater likelihood of manifesting violent antisocial behavior as adolescents and adults. Also, individuals who were born with particular alleles of the serotonin transporter gene and also experienced multiple stressful life events were more likely to manifest serious depression and suicidality. This research raises the question of whether testimony regarding a defendant's genotype, exposure to child maltreatment, and experience of unusual stress is appropriate to present during the guilt or penalty phases of criminal trials, especially when capital punishment is a consideration. The authors present their experience in genotyping criminal defendants and presenting genetic information at criminal trials.
