Challenging Parental Alienation: A New Book for Professionals and Parents

 

There is a good deal of published material about “parental alienation” (PA). Unfortunately, when parents are confronted with allegations that they have made a child reject the other parent, it can be very hard for them to find the professional journals that publish this kind of material. The books that parents could find in the library or buy are almost all by PA proponents who try to support allegations that a parent has caused a child’s reluctance for contact with the other parent.

Well, TA-DA! The first book arguing against PA principles and practices is to come out on Dec. 3, 2021! Here is the reference info:

Mercer, J., & Drew, M. (Eds.) (2022). Challenging Parental Alienation. Milton Park, UK: Routledge.

I wish I could tell you the price, but I don’t know what it is; it’s the publishers that set this, not authors or editors. But, if it turns out to be too pricey for you, you could ask your public library to buy it.

Pre-publication orders can be placed at https://www.routledge.com/Challenging-Parental-Alienation-New-Directions-Professionals-and-Parents/Mercer-Drew/p/book/9780367559762

This edited book has chapters by a number of lawyers and of psychologists and others involved in the family courts. Especially notable is that chapters deal not only with PA in the United States, but with family court and domestic violence issues in Canada, Australia, and the United Kingdom. And, we are proud that the book includes material written by a young woman who went through a PA treatment and by a mother who experienced psychotherapy based on PA assumptions.

Here is the Table of Contents, with authors’ names for each chapter:

 

Table of Contents

Chapter 1  Introduction to Parental Alienation Concepts and Practices

                       Jean Mercer and Margaret Drew

Section One  

When a Child Avoids a Parent: Understanding the Problem

Chapter 2   History of the Parental Alienation Belief System  

                       Julie Doughty and Margaret Drew

Chapter 3   The International Expansion of the Parental Alienation Belief System Through the

UK and Australian Experiences  

                       Julie  Doughty  and Zoe Rathus

Chapter 4   Experiences of Parental Alienation Interventions 

                       Adrienne Barnett, Arianna Riley, and “Katherine”

Section Two

When a Child Avoids a Parent: Identifying and Treating Problems

Chapter 5   Evaluations for the Courts in Child Custody Cases:   An Attorney’s Perspective

                        Nancy Erickson

Chapter 6   Distinguishing Alienation from Child Abuse and Adverse Parenting  

                        Madelyn  Milchman

Chapter 7    Comparison of Parental  Alienation Treatments and Evidence-Based Treatments for 

                    Children

                        Sarah Trane, Kelly Champion, and Steven Hupp

Chapter 8 Gender Credibility and Culture: The Impact on Women Accused of Alienation  

                         Margaret Drew

Chapter 9     Developmental Changes in Children and Adolescents: Relevance for Parental

                     Alienation Discussions

                         Jean Mercer

Section Three

When a Child Avoids a Parent: Scientific and Legal Analyses

Chapter 10    Parental Alienation Concepts and the Law: An International Perspective   

                             Suzanne Zaccour

Chapter 11    Questioning the Scientific Validity of the Parental Alienation Labels in Abuse

Cases                     

                             Joan Meier

Chapter 12     Parental Alienation, Science, and Pseudoscience  

                            Jean Mercer

 

Chapter 13     Conclusion: Current Issues About Parental Alienation 

                           Jean Mercer and Margaret Drew