DIVORCING FAMILIES WITH YOUNG CHILDREN IN THE COURT'S FAMILY SERVICES UNIT Profiles and Impact of Services |
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| Authors: | Marsha Kline Prutt Barbara Nangle Chelsea Bailey |
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| Institution: | Marsha Kline Prutt, Ph.D., M.S.L. is Research Scientist in Law and Psychiatry at the Yale School of Medicine in the Department of Psychiatry and the Yale Child Study Center. She has a clinical psychology degree from University of California Berkeley, with additional masters' degrees in law from Yale, and education from the University of Pennsylvania. She recently completed the Culture of Litigation Project, which investigated the process of divorce, and its impact on families with children under the age of six. She is currently directing the Collaborative Divorce Project, an intervention and research program being piloted in the state of Connecticut;. Barbara Nangle is a research assistant at The Consultation Center, a Yale-affiliated prevention and health promotion organization. She served as the project manager on the Collaborative Divorce Project;. Chelsea Bailey served as Research Assistant on the Culture of Litigation Project, conducted at The Consultation Center;. |
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| Abstract: | Little is known about the families being served by court support services, or the effectiveness of the services provided. This study investigates 137 higher conflict, divorcing families with young children, who received services from the Family Services division. The study utilizes questionnaire data filled out by family services clinicians. The families presented with multiple mental health needs, including allegations of substance use and physical, emotional and sexual abuses of spouses and, to a lesser extent, children. Results detailed evaluation outcomes pertaining to joint legal and physical custody, showing an increase in joint legal custody, with little difference in physical custody arrangements. Evaluators did encourage less parental dropout. The data also profiled parents least likely to attend mandatory parenting education, accept evaluators' recommendations, and settle their case with mediation assistance. Identifying these families early can help family services clinicians track families into individualized service plans as needed. |
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