MESSAGE
| DATE | 2006-03-31 |
| FROM | Ruben Safir
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| SUBJECT | Subject: [NYLXS - HANGOUT] Parental Rights in Albany
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From:
Dusty - view
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Date:
Tues, Mar 28
2006 5:35 pm
Email:
"Dusty"
Groups:
alt.child-support, alt.mens-rights, alt.support.divorce
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http://mensnewsdaily.com/2006/03/28/a330-would-help-new-yorks-childre...
A330 Would Help New York's Children
of Divorce
March 28, 2006
BullsEye
By Mike McCormick and Glenn Sacks
In the wake of the New York
Matrimonial Commission's
recommendation that the
state embrace no fault divorce, the
Assembly's Children & Families
Committee
will soon consider a family law bill
which will help reduce post-divorce
conflict and greatly improve the
lives of New York's children of
divorce.
Three dozen Assemblypersons have
signed on as sponsors or co-sponsors
of
A330. The bill would protect the
loving bonds children share with
both
parents by establishing joint
custody as the preferred parenting
arrangement
after divorce.
While a growing consensus of mental
health and family law professionals
endorse joint custody, New York
still opts for sole maternal custody
in the
overwhelming majority of cases.
However, research establishes that
joint
custody is what's best for kids.
According to a meta-analysis
conducted by psychologist Robert
Bauserman and
published in the American
Psychological Association's Journal
of Family
Psychology, children in joint
custody settings had fewer behavior
and
emotional problems, higher
self-esteem, better family
relations, and better
school performance than children in
sole custody arrangements.
A Harvard University study of 517
families conducted across a
four-and-a-half year period measured
depression, deviance, school effort,
and school grades in children
ranging in age from 10 to 18. The
researchers
found that the children in joint
custody settings fared better in
these
areas than those in sole custody.
A study by psychologist Joan Kelly
published in the Family and
Conciliation
Courts Review found that children of
divorce "express higher levels of
satisfaction with joint physical
custody than with sole custody
arrangements," and cite the "benefit
of remaining close to both parents"
as
an important factor.
When Arizona State University
psychology professor William
Fabricius
conducted a study of college
students who had experienced their
parents'
divorces while they were children,
he found that over two-thirds
believed
that "living equal amounts of time
with each parent is the best
arrangement
for children."
Research demonstrates that joint
custody also leads to high rates of
child
support compliance. This is no
surprise-parents who are permitted
little
role in their children's lives have
less motivation to make sacrifices
for
their children. Also, under the
current system noncustodial parents
are
often forced to wage expensive court
battles in order to protect their
time
and relationships with their
children. These parents end up
supporting
lawyers instead of kids.
The New York Chapter of the National
Organization for Women, the New
York-based National Coalition for
Family Justice, and other misguided
women's
advocates oppose A330 in part
because they believe that joint
custody is
unworkable when there has been
conflict between divorcing parents.
Research
indicates that these fears are
unwarranted.
According to a study in the Journal
of Divorce & Remarriage, over time
joint
custody serves to help reduce
conflict between divorced spouses.
When Texas
Woman's University conducted a study
of the effects of post-divorce
discord
on children aged 8 to 12, they found
that joint custody does not expose
children to greater parental
conflict. Bauserman's research found
that
divorced couples with joint custody
report less conflict than those in
sole-custody settings.
NY NOW and others are legitimately
concerned about protecting divorcing
women who have been victims of
domestic violence. However, A330's
presumption of joint custody only
applies to fit parents-abused women
would
receive sole custody.
Opponents of A330 also claim that
joint custody creates confusion and
instability for children because it
requires them to spend significant
time
in two houses. Research shows that
children fare best in the stability
of a
married, two parent household. Once
that family is ruptured, however,
the
best way to restore the children's
sense of permanence is to preserve
and
protect their critical bonds with
the two people they love most in the
world-their mother and their father.
Also, according to Kelly's research,
joint custody usually does not
create
confusion for children about their
living arrangements.
A330 requires courts to award joint
custody unless there are allegations
that it would be detrimental to the
child. Should these allegations be
made,
the parent requesting sole custody
bears the burden of demonstrating
detriment. And when judges decide
against joint custody, they must
state
their reasons. A330 is a moderate,
common sense way to reduce the harm
and
loss children experience from
divorce.
This article first appeared in the
Albany Times-Union (3/22/06).
Mike McCormick is the Executive
Director of the American Coalition
for
Fathers and Children, the world's
largest shared parenting
organization.
Their website is www.acfc.org.
Glenn Sacks' columns on men's and
fathers' issues have appeared in
dozens of
America's largest newspapers. Glenn
can be reached via his website at
www.GlennSacks.com or via email at
G...-at-GlennSacks.com.
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