{3:40 minutes to read} This is a continuation in our article series that focuses on Joint and Sole Custody. To read part 1, click here.  

Recent studies suggest that “shared parenting arrangements” can work and have a positive impact on children. Shared parenting arrangements work best when parents are able to cooperate and work together amicably with the children’s needs in mind. Shared parenting does not work as well in high-conflict cases.  

Research on shared parenting arrangements is in its infancy. Most of this research is correlational in nature; that is, no causality can be presumed. With this caveat in mind, Bauserman, in his 2012 review of the literature, found that parents who are able to successfully engage in shared parenting tend to be:

• older;
• better educated;
• have a fairly high income; and
• live in close proximity to each other.

These findings suggest that the difference in shared versus sole custody may have little to do with the arrangement per se, and may be more likely to reflect certain enduring characteristics and socioeconomic variables associated with successful parenting.

The literature on shared custody also suggests that shared custody arrangements involve a greater degree of contact between fathers and their children, irrespective of whether the arrangement involves physical or legal custody. Such finding could be interpreted as suggesting that fathers in joint custody arrangements reflect a group with a higher pre-existing level of commitment to their children.

An important question that has been addressed in the literature on custody arrangements is whether the quantity or the quality of contact between the child and the non-custodial parent is most important. When addressing the issue of frequency of contact versus quality of the contact, many believe that quality is actually more critical than the quantity of time (see Trinder 20120, Lamb 2012, Bauserman 2012) although others have argued that in high-conflict divorce the amount of time spent may be the more critical variable.

Sandler and his colleagues (2012) have identified a number of dynamic factors which affect the quality of parental time following separation. These factors include the particular social context (meaning the social support systems, stresses in the parent’s life); the child temperament; and the characteristics of the parents. An intriguing finding suggests that consistent child support payments is a strong predictor of high academic success and reduced acting out behavior in children of divorced parents (Amato & Gilbreth 1999). In a 2012 article, Pruett and her colleagues suggest that a father’s active engagement in his children’s lives is distinctly different in nature and complementary to that of the mother. Fathers are often associated with novelty or excitement, and emphasize values like independence and competence, whereas mother’s parenting is often associated with nurturing, regulation and soothing of emotions.

And how about gender and custodial arrangements?  

Bauserman (2012) literature review suggest that fathers in shared custodial arrangements are happier than fathers entrusted with primary care roles. However, according to Bauserman, whereas fathers prefer shared caring to sole custody, the same does not hold true for mothers, where the shared parenting group was more dissatisfied than mothers with primary custody despite the increased custodial responsibilities entailed in sole custody.

What can account for this finding? One hypothesis worth considering, that may merit further exploration, is that such findings may be related to differences in socialization processes and the expectation they create. Traditionally, women often took the role of primary child caretaker. It may be that the gender differences in socialization processes and role expectations may account for these gender differences.   

Should these gender differences inform how attorneys work with their clients in child custody dispute and inform their views?   

Love to hear your thoughts. Please contact me at nycforensics@gmail.com with questions or comments.

Dr. Alberto Yohananoff
NYC Forensics
dryohananoff@nycforensics.com
P: (646) 284-5600
F: (212) 706-9136

Posted in Conflict Resolution