IDEOLOGIES OF JOINT CUSTODY |
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| Authors: | Anne Opie |
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| Institution: | Anne Opie, Ph. D., is a Research Fellow at the Department of Sociology and Social Work at Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand. Her Ph. D. thesis was a qualitative study of the everyday lives of some joint custody families. She is currently carrying out research funded by the New Zealand Health Research Council into social work services to informal caregivers of confused older people. |
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| Abstract: | This article discusses the way that the ideological endorsement of joint custody as being in the chilďs best interests has resulted in significant issues, especially those more likely to be raised by mothers, being marginalized or suppressed. Although more commentators and researchers are now taking issue with some of the problems inherent in joint custody arrangements, many New Zealand professionals working with separating families continue to view the arrangement very positively. As a consequence, there has been little evaluation of those family situations where joint custody is not in the chilďs best interests, especially those where there is ongoing hostility between parents. |
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