parental alienation syndrome
Guglielmo Gulotta * University Professor of "Forensic Psychology", University of Turin.
1. The parental alienation syndrome: definition and description
2. Legislative aspects and impacts on the child
3. Criteria for differential diagnosis
4. Factors facilitating the development of the syndrome
5. Conclusions.
----------------------- 1. The parental alienation syndrome: definition and description
"appeared recently in the literature Italian conceptual psychological parameter of parental alienation syndrome (Parental Alienation Syndrome - PAS). As determined by forensic psychologist Richard Gardner (1985, 1987, 1989, 1992), has been the subject of interest in the family law section of the Bar of the United States (Claw, Rivlin, 1991) and recent review on the part of 'authoritative American Journal of Forensic Psychology (Rand, 1997a, 1997b).
This syndrome can be defined as the behavior of one or more children in the context of the conflict intergenitoriale becomes supercritical and detractor against a parent because the other influenced him in this sense properly indoctrinating. Some autori (Clawar, Rivlin, 1991) parlano anche di "bambini programmati" o ai quali è stato effettuato il "lavaggio del cervello" (brainwashed children).
La sindrome nella letteratura esistente viene descritta in base alle tecniche per produrla, alle motivazioni dei genitori per attuarla, alle caratteristiche dei genitori che la producono, alle caratteristiche dei bambini che li rendono più o meno plasmabili e agli effetti che produce. I risultati teorici ed empirici in materia sono sintetizzati con alcuni esempi nella tabella di pagina 36.
2. Aspetti legislativi e ripercussioni sul minore
C'è da scommettere che per la sua pregnanza l’utilizzazione di questa sindrome avrà fortuna nelle aule giudiziarie, also because Italy goes back to the European Convention on the Rights of the Child of the Council of Europe. This document will require judges to hear juvenile family court in all proceedings that affect them, particularly in cases of separation and divorce of parents, while the art. 12 United Nations spoke of "opportunity * to be heard." The child must be informed of everything concerning it, have the right to express his opinion and know the possible consequences of his views. Exercise this option by itself or by someone who is "in consideration of his age and his understanding of the facts."
In Italy the law on the separation of 1970, as amended in 1987, gives the judge the opportunity to hear the minor only "if absolutely necessary in view of his age" (art. 4 c. 8). In short, the child is almost never heard, unless in the presence of a psychological expertise for which he is heard by a social worker or a psychologist, but his opinion has absolutely no legal value. With recent legislative changes, the child is no longer just the subject of separation and divorce, but becomes an active subject could express an opinion about the causes of family conflict and especially the person with whom I'd rather be.
If the review of the child become important, the disadvantaged spouse will tend to give preference to the son of "programming" the parent's choice.
So, who will be tasked to investigate to diagnose this syndrome should be aware that it was "discovered" as a disease is discovered, but constructed and in a sense "invented" as a battered child syndrome (Gulotta, 1995 )
a) a phenomenon, namely that of beatings and ill-treatment educational purposes, and has always accepted as legitimate, is detected, studied and classified by some social observers (with reference to their values \u200b\u200band parameters): in this case Some radiologists and pediatricians felt that a pattern of fracture and refracture in children was probably due to voluntary activities and develop this condition - as if it were a disease - "battered child syndrome"
b) pressure groups, such as the media, aware of social observers , appropriate the problem diagnosed and defined-dramatizing it, describing and documenting cases of special emblematic;
c) the general public begins to perceive the phenomenon as a problem and began to request that steps be taken to resolve it;
d) scientific organizations and / or professional report the recurrence of the phenomenon of large statistical documents and propose solutions for prevention and treatment;
e) agenzie di potere, spesso politico, offrono mezzi materiali ed economici per arginare e risolvere il problema;
f) il fenomeno viene amplificato rispetto alla sua reale portata:
- la drammatizzazione dei fatti porta per effetto della euristica della disponibilità (Nisbett, Ross, 1989) a considerare più frequenti eventi che sono rimasti più impressi nella memoria;
- l’ambiguità del fenomeno (quanti scapaccioni fanno un bambino maltrattato? dove finisce l' uso dei mezzi di correzione e quando inizia l' abuso ?) consente di far rientrare a discrezione nel problema anche eventi ambigui, per via della tendenza a preferire falsi positivi piuttosto che falsi negativi;
- la divulgazione di statistiche fa sentire il deviante (in questo caso il vero genitore maltrattante) come parte di una porzione significativa dell!
Bisogna invece evitare, in questa materia, di reificare delle metafore ritenendo che il "bambino alienato" abbia una sorta di malattia trasmessagli dal genitore e che, ogni qualvolta siano presenti critiche nei confronti di un genitore da parte del figlio, questi sia vittima della sindrome in questione.
3. Criteri per una diagnosi differenziale
Intanto è necessario stabilire che cosa non sia l'alienazione genitoriale: in tutte le famiglie, anche quelle intatte, si stabiliscono spesso delle alleanze talvolta spontanee, talvolta provocate ed in alcuni casi anche collusive (Willi, 1993) e spesso esistono delle preferences of the children to their parents even before the onset of marital conflict. The cases of intra-and interfamilial conflict (ie, within the family of origin and, subsequently, between any new families) that precede, accompany and consequent separation or divorce and alliances especially with children are still present even more because they can be used to support, influence, blackmail, disrupt, to reconnect.
Another issue to consider is that all their children's education is to influence, in the address in the selection of the values \u200b\u200band choices of evaluation, the diagnosis interpersonal adaptation to the rules. The family also as a structured, tends to continually reconstruct reality in order to their needs: When it breaks down, it was found by many empirical studies (see Gius, Zamperini, 1995, for a review) that the partners use a variety of assignments responsibility that distort the actual data in the service of their identity and their claim is correct or at least limiting liability in case of adverse events.
Regardless of accusations - often deliberately exaggerated - that the conflict partners hurl themselves in the processes for separation and charge almost any type of attributions separandi are self-serving against the spouse: the fact that the parent inculcates the child is often subjective reality its real, rebuilt to justify and to justify (Fincham et al., 1990, Harvey et al., 1992). If this is so common, as distinguished from what the parent says and does artfully to "sell" the child? Where does the influence of education and where he started programming? When we are faced with a
preference, so to speak, "natural", and when it is conditional?
We try to identify some distinctive characteristics of the latter (as well as the values \u200b\u200bin the table below):
- the child changes the flag after the provisional custody and without a plausible reason;
- criticism / other charges parent appear inconsistent, exaggerated, contradictory or contradicted by the facts;
- criticisms / accusations seem stereotyped, lacking detail and carbon-copy of the thought of a parent;
- criticisms / accusations are unrelated to the scope of experience of a child of that age (for example, a child of 6 years as critical because the father is unable to work, he always supports the other, can not be relied on ");
- formulating criticisms / accusations that contain information that only the other parent may have provided ("Your mother attended other men when we do not see") - anxiety and fear in meeting the other parent in the absence of specific reasons (for example, because a figlia dovrebbe avere paura del padre dopo la separazione se prima non ne aveva?);- preoccupazioni volte a tutelare, senza una ragione specifica, un genitore rispetto all'altro;- ricerca di informazioni sul genitore bersaglio e/o considerazione delle informazioni sul genitore programmatore come segrete, da non divulgare;
- partigianeria a favore del nuovo compagno del genitore rispetto all'altro genitore biologico;
- presenza di razzismo familiare ("Noi siamo i Rossi, brava gente; i Bianchi invece sono dei buoni a nulla e prepotenti"; "Così è tuo padre e così è tuo nonno");
- ritenere che un genitore sia soltanto vittima e l'altro soltanto colpevole o responsabile con una visione manichea e senza sfumature.
4. Fattori facilitanti lo sviluppo della sindrome
La diagnosi è complicata dal fatto che l'alienazione genitoriale può avvenire anche in assenza di un programma consapevole da parte del genitore che se ne avvantaggia. Inoltre le strategie che possono essere messe in opera per indottrinare e istigare il figlio contro l'altro genitore possono essere dirette e indirette : entrambe ruotano attorno ad un tema principale ("Tuo padre ci ha fatto mancare il sostegno economico") con ramificazioni e ampliamenti generalizzanti ("È un buono a nulla come suo padre"), ma non sono spesso immediatamente riconoscibili.
Delle strategie dirette è più facile trovare traccia perché possono essere scoperte vagliando in filigrana il comportamento del figlio che ricalca le opinioni di un genitore a danno dell'altro in assenza di assorbimento delle ragioni espresse da quest'ultimo. In alcuni casi è poi possibile scoprire con quali minacce, promesse, premi si è guadagnata l'opinione del figlio.
Le tecniche indirette, invece, incidono più sottilmente sull'opinione e sul comportamento dei figli. Esse di solito consistono nel far leva sulle emozioni del bambino, sul suo senso di lealtà. Stratagemmi di questo tipo possono essere di varia natura e la letteratura psicosociale è piena di indicazioni su tecniche più o meno esplicite di influenza interpersonale (Gulotta, 1995; 1989). Proviamo ad elencarne qualcuna (oltre a quelle indicate nella tabella):
- Tell stories in which the other parent is a loser or ridiculous ("Do you remember when your mother was denied consideration for the license?");
- exaggerating its role as that of the parent educator fade ("I memories that I have given birth, breast fed, cared for, clothed, fed ... and your father worked all day and was only in the evening with you? ");
meet the child's wishes that the other limits or disapproves (" If your mother does not want to take to the stage I'll do it ");
show tastes, ideas, opinions ... diametrically opposed to those of the other parent;
" sgenitorializzare "the other parent, for example, calling him by name (" C ' is John on the phone "instead of" There's your father on the phone ") by removing his pictures from home ...;
meta-communicate in a paradoxical way the other parent (" There would be many things to say about your mother, but I I'm not one to criticize the parents, "" I respect the decision of your father to visit you, who really wants to or not, "" You know that after your father loves you, even if you're not closer) " , creating double bonds that confuse and make it more easily suggestible;
mystify the impressions and feelings of the child ("You can not be unhappy with everything I do for you" "You can not wish well to your father, you do not saw how they acted?);
continually ask the child what he thinks of the other parent, forcing him to take a stand, and reward or punish him according to his answers.
is clear that the techniques described are only some of the most frequently encountered in literature and is sufficient to use any of them to cause these effects, but this does not preclude other methods of brainwashing, among the many existing, may be put in place, more or less consciously, determining the parental alienation syndrome.
Similarly, there is no guarantee that the use of such techniques inevitably leads the child to take sides with the parent programmer, especially if the child has a level of autonomy cognitive, affective and social as to prevent you from being influenced. Does not exclude the possibility that he may consciously accept the role charged "and collude with one parent to discredit the other in order to get some sort of concession, for simple revenge because of an injury suffered or perceived, to make more likely to rely on the parent preferred.
The literature describes some psychological and behavioral characteristics of the targeted parent that would facilitate the establishment of PAS, although it is generally given less importance than the role of the parent scheduler (Wakefield, Underwager, 1990, Rand, 1997b):
- sex: two-thirds of the targeted parent is the father, which thus more likely to be a victim of PAS especially when falsely accused of sexual abuse;
- the responsibility attributed to the failure of the marriage, the parent which is assigned this responsibility is more likely to become the target parent, especially when the spouse has been unfaithful or has started a new relationship immediately after separation;
- emotional distance from their children: the parent who has a detached attitude towards children has more likely to become targets of PAS as it reacts to the situation when it is too late and is still perceived in a negative way the children who tend to prefer the parent closer emotionally;
- particularly passive and ambivalent attitude or, conversely, aggressive toward their partners, children and issues related to their expectations and the separation in general: the parent who shows little resolved the issues around child custody or separation, and then allow "guided" by the moves of the former partner without taking action, they are more likely to be targeted parent because it allows the other to influence the child, even the parent who, by contrast, appears too aggressive, it becomes more likely target of the PAS, as it will be easier to attribute the "cause" of parental conflict.
an important role in alleviating or increase the consequences of PAS is covered by some other person who, in addition to the family, becoming part of the dispute over custody of their children. After separation, there is in fact often the creation of genuine partnerships of friends and relatives of ex-couples with one of two members, who, hearing the single "version" of the story of a marriage, they tend to lose their objectivity . If this is normal and the new "allies" often have the function of emotional support the new partner in the difficult time following the separation, they may in some cases, however, become a factor facilitating the onset of PAS, as together, more or less unconsciously, to create and sustain the operations of any alienating parent (Johnson, Roseby, 1997).
Among the most important roles in this dynamic is certainly one of the new partners, who can become a source of further conflict by pressuring for concessions on the visits of her stepchildren or their expectations. In some cases the new partners are the real culprits of the conflict in the couple separated and can therefore act as a catalyst to push her more to alienate the child and, in extreme cases, to cause him to support false allegations of mistreatment or sexual abuse . More often, an indirect factor associated with new partners that promote the establishment della PAS è quello relativo alle differenze culturali, sociali e religiose con l'altro genitore, che può fungere da ulteriore motivo di allontanamento del figlio.
In particolare, sono descritti nella letteratura numerosi casi di sindrome di alienazione genitoriale indotta attraverso l'appartenenza del genitore alienante e/o del nuovo partner a svariati tipi di "culti", che possono ruotare intorno ad un tema qualsiasi (religioso, culturale, ideologico…) ma al di là del quale presentano caratteristiche comuni facilitanti la PAS: la presenza di un leader carismatico che controlla i membri del culto, l'utilizzo dell'indottrinamento e talvolta di un vero e proprio lavaggio del cervello come modalità di apprendimento della nuova ideology and "removal" of the autonomy of thought and
of their life history, isolation from people outside the cult with the exception of those from whom you are looking for new recruits, the establishment of a Manichean vision of the world strong values \u200b\u200bof in-group and out-group and new life styles and therefore also those of the other parent. The psychological state of people who have just separated makes them more vulnerable to these cults, often perceived as a means of recognition of their "righteousness" means the entry in the cult is a kind of unconscious moral redemption which would remove the meaning of guilt following the separation, attributed entirely to ex-partner. The children who join al genitore appartenente al culto subiscono a loro volta questo processo di spersonalizzazione, tanto più quando sono piccoli e non possiedono una sufficiente autonomia di pensiero (Greene, 1989; Singer, Lalich, 1995).
Infine, e non a caso tratto l'argomento proprio a conclusione di questo articolo, un ruolo di assoluta importanza nelle dinamiche conflittuali tra i genitori separati e dunque anche nell'eventualità dell'instaurarsi della PAS è quello dei professionisti che, a vario titolo, entrano nelle questioni relative all'affidamento dei figli: periti, consulenti tecnici di parte, psicoterapeuti, avvocati, giudici, mediatori, educatori.
Mentre per quanto riguarda i giudici le uniche raccomandazioni sono quella di carefully assess the situation, particularly if the preference of the child to a parent is genuine or induced, and the use of CTU able to recognize the presence of PAS compared with other professionals is a problem of what is in these cases the real interest the child and the parties.
As to the role of 'guardian of the child of any lawyer or, if it is true that they must protect the interests of his client, it is equally true that those of the alienating parent and the child does not correspond to those alienated from their cast: the defender should refrain from colluding with his client and try to persuade the alienating parent to put an end to the pathological behavior with the child, to give the mandate in case the customer does not understand the situation. In turn, any guardian of the child should work in order to put an end to the process of alienation, which provides the first immediate removal from the alienating parent even if the child claims to want to stay with him at all costs.
We now come to mental health professionals. As for those called upon to deliver assessments with legal value, they should first take into account the role they played in the parental conflict, which, if mishandled, could bring the parties to have to compete even harder. It is therefore necessary that they take charge, even when officially part of the whole family situation, whereas la disputa genitoriale non come a "somma zero", ma come opportunità per tutti per far valere i propri interessi. Se ciò rientra di diritto nel ruolo del CTU, anche i consulenti di parte dovrebbero tenere presente che l'interesse primario è quello del minore, che non può certo essere diverso da quello dei genitori seppur questi non se ne rendono talvolta conto: nel caso sospetti la presenza di una PAS, il consulente del genitore alienante dovrebbe astenersi dal supportare le sue richieste e invece aiutarlo a comprendere che, continuando a mettere il figlio contro l'altro genitore, non lo sta tutelando ma, al contrario, lo sta danneggiando psicologicamente.
Tra i professionisti della salute mentale, merita una specifica trattazione il ruolo dello psicoterapeuta dei figli, che può diventare parte del sistema che alimenta la PAS, in particolare quando le uniche persone con cui effettua i colloqui sono il genitore alienante ed il figlio. Questa situazione si realizza purtroppo di frequente, in quanto il genitore che sceglie lo psicoterapeuta per il figlio, lo accompagna per la seduta e si fa carico del pagamento, è nella posizione di influenzare lo psicoterapeuta in merito al ruolo che questi adotta, agli obiettivi della terapia ed agli eventuali terzi partecipanti. Lo psicoterapeuta si trova così a svolgere la terapia sulla base di informazioni incomplete o false, rinforzando l'idea che il bambino debba essere "salvato" dal genitore cattivo, in realtà il bersaglio dell'alienazione genitoriale (Lund, 1995).
Among the internal factors that the therapist can facilitate collusion with the alienating parent, as well as misunderstanding of the PAS, a very important one of his own theory of reference on the influence of interpersonal relationships on psychological distress. Campbell (1992) showed that psychotherapists who tend to make negative inferences about the role played by the separated parents may reinforce the sense of anger toward a child's parents. So when the personal point of view of the therapist toward the target parent of PAS is negative, the result is a more or less subtle form of influence on the child, which facilitates or reinforces the emergence of alienation or otherwise distorted vision of the reality of the alienating parent.
5.
Conclusion In conclusion, as I believe I have shown, it is all too easy to confuse the apparent desire for a child to be with one parent when the other is considered negative, with a situation of parental alienation: for this reason, from Members of the professionals to assess these situations requires a thorough knowledge of the subject and an update on the ongoing international literature. The assessment should also be made on a case by case basis and in practice and by people who have professional expertise in a specific subject. This may help to prevent dangerous generalizations and the triggering of conflicts beyond those already present in the context of custody of the children normally, the interest of which - it should be remembered - it must be a point of departure and arrival of any psychological intervention and any judicial decision.
Techniques for induction of PAS and brainwashing
- Denial of the existence of psychosocial target parent (never to speak of a spouse, do not see the child, remove his photos from the house)
Denial of criticism towards the targeted parent ( criticize your spouse in front of the child, and when they repeated the criticism, attributing to him the source of criticism)
Destruction of the image of the target parent (to speak only in a negative way the spouse)
Handling of the situation (giving false information to the spouse to the child so that misunderstandings or conflicts arise between the two)
Guarding the differences (to highlight the differences between the target and the spouse or the child themselves) Induction
Alliance (meet all the wishes of the child and / or those not met by the spouse)
Creating alliances with people attended the child (teachers, friends ...)
Induction of guilt (convince his son that if he makes certain things means that the parent does not want good programmer)
Induction of doubt (his son to believe that love is not true of the other parent, concerned ...)
Induction of fear (to tell the child that his contacts with the target parent are dangerous for some reason)
reconstruction of reality (to manipulate the family history: "If you were born is of me, your father does not want you", even when the father just wanted to wait a year for professional systems)
Punishment and reward (threaten / punish or reward the child if ...)
Promise (promise the child that the parent program will improve the conditions of life)
double bond (talking at cross purposes to make impressionable child indoctrination)
Mystification (manipulate the feelings of the child)
Reasons parents Programming
obtaining custody of his son
total revenge on the partner
Achieve economic concessions
conviction to be the most suitable parent
Removal of child from this partner (view) criminal, drug addict, alcoholic, mentally disturbed, antisocial
... Fear of losing 'affection of his son
conviction that he has "given over" to the child than the partner
Jealousy for the new position of partner
Integrity of their sense of identity
desire to detach himself emotionally from the partner
fear that the child discovers the negative facts in the account Parent programmer
Maintaining links with partners through conflict
Desire to control and / or power
If the couple is not married, the marriage license by the partner who refuses
Characteristics of parents programmers
Empirical studies estimate that men who use these techniques separandi 2% -25% and often rigid and authoritarian character, women are 4% -85% of the total separande and are generally more lenient than
Men use more direct methods such as abduction, women use more grooming, For example, the false accusations of sexual abuse, because usually spend more time with his son
In general, parents programmers are narcissistically vulnerable immature, with low self-esteem, dependent child or the new partner who sometimes is actually responsible for the planning
Using the techniques of brainwashing are over-represented in the following categories of parents, drug addicts, alcoholics, abusers, parents who accuse the partner incest, criminals in general, mental health characteristics of children
malleable
addiction, identification, high number and duration of contacts, there are secrets, similar to the parent programmer
No brothers or sisters or any other relevant persons over Fear
parents and / or anxiety also induced
Liabilities
Low capacity for insight
Presenza di sensi di colpa
Egocentrismo
Bassa autonomia
Bassa autostima
Bassa assertività
Importanza data dal bambino al fatto di avere genitori biologici o meno, a seconda della nuova situazione del genitore bersaglio
Età (fino ai 2 anni circa il bambino è poco suggestionabile; da questa età la suggestionabilità cresce fino ai 7/8 anni per rimanere costante fino ai 15/16: da questo periodo in poi, all'aumentare dell'età dell'adolescente l'insorgere di critiche ed accuse ingiustificate contro il genitore bersaglio è sempre più il frutto della sua menzogna intenzionale influenzata o meno dalla manipolazione genitoriale)
Effetti a breve e lungo termine sul bambino
Possono essere molto diversi a seconda delle tecniche utilizzate, della loro intensità e durata, delle risorse e dell'età del bambino, del fatto che egli creda o meno a quanto gli viene propinato.
In generale, gli effetti possono essere:
· Aggressività
· Mancanza di controllo e acting-out
· Problemi scolastici
· Paura immotivata del genitore bersaglio
· Ostilità verso amici, parenti, opinioni, azioni… connesse al genitore bersaglio
· Confusione emotiva e/o intellettiva
· Disordini alimentari, del sonno, dell'attenzione e psicosomatici in generale
· Dipendenza emotiva
· Bassa autostima
· Fobie
· Regressione
· Eccesso di razionalizzazione
· Futuro carattere manipolatorio e/o materialistico
· Depressione
· Comportamenti autodistruttivi e/o ossessivo-compulsivi
· Tossicodipendenza e alcoldipendenza
· Problemi sessuali, di identità di genere, relazionali, emotivi
· Disturbi dell'identità
· Egocentrismo
· Narcisismo
· Falso Sé
· Nei casi più gravi si rilevano anche sindromi di tipo psichiatrico (es. schizofrenia, psicosi paranoiche…)
Questo articolo è pubblicato sul sito http://www.minori.it/ , che ringraziamo per la gentile possibilità di citazione (l'articolo si trova nel n. 4 dei Quaderni "Pianeta Infanzia" ).
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