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THE ART AND SCIENCE OF CHILD CUSTODY EVALUATIONS
Author(s) -
Gould Jonathan W.,
Stahl Philip M.
Publication year - 2000
Publication title -
family court review
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.171
H-Index - 4
eISSN - 1744-1617
pISSN - 1531-2445
DOI - 10.1111/j.174-1617.2000.tb00581.x
Subject(s) - child custody , collateral , psychology , clinical judgment , social psychology , applied psychology , criminology , medicine , law , political science , medical physics
Should a child custody evaluation be a clinical tool informed by forensic methods and procedures or a forensic tool informed by clinical experience? The authors conclude that an evaluation requires a delicate blend of scientific thinking, clinical understanding, through observations, appropriate use of psychological tests, and self‐report measures and information from sufficient collateral sources. Evaluators must pay attention to internal biases and integrate them with the relevant literature. Finally, evaluators must remember that their evaluation and reports will be used by both the courts and the family in reaching a decision on behalf of the children.