Child custody arrangement can affect parent-child relationships
Other than providing the basic needs for their children, parents play an important role in ensuring their child’s emotional health. Parents in Orange County, especially divorced parents, will be interested in a study showing that custody affects the security of the relationship between the child and the parent.
A study from the University of Illinois concluded that the strength of the relationship between a divorced parent and the child depends on age and the parent who assumes custody. One of the studies, which gathered feedback from 7,500 people, stated that mothers were granted custody 74 percent of the time. Only 11 percent of the fathers took custodianship of their children. Participants who lived with their mothers are more likely to feel insecure in their relationship with their father. On the opposite side, a respondent whose father has custody feels less secure in his or her relationship with the mother.
It is understandable that all parents are concerned about their children’s welfare. According to a family law expert, child custody arrangements vary on a case-by-case basis. Not all arrangements can fit the needs and abilities of parents to have parenting time with their children. In cases where there is no significant conflict and the ex-spouses get along fine, equal parenting can be an ideal arrangement. However, if there is a great deal of conflict or challenges for either parent, the child custody dispute may need to be settled in court.
The children should not be used as pawns after divorce. Parents should consider that child custody should be about the best interests of the child and not a form of retaliation against the other parent. If a parent feels that modification of the child custody agreement is necessary, they may wish to consult a lawyer. In the end, parents should advocate what will benefit the child, not which parent has the upper hand in the situation.
Source: Huffington Post, “Equal Child Custody Revisited ,” Henry Gornbein, June 27, 2013
