Bohm Wildish: California Divorce and Family Law
Is a child better off when both parents have custody? Determining child custody is one of the most difficult aspects of many divorces; while it may not be in the best interest of the child to live with both parents in a single household, the bulk of research shows that joint custody is better for the child’s health and well being. It is not the specific living situation, per se, that contributes to well being, but the amount of time the child spends with each parent.
Dr. Robert Bauserman of the Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, has been studying shared custody for years. In a recent study, he compared adjustment of children in shared physical or joint legal custody situations with those in sole custody situations. Dr. Bauserman found that children who either live with both parents or who spend time with each, are “better adjusted” than those who were in sole custody situations. They tend to have fewer emotional and behavioral problems, better relationships with family, and better performance in school. “These children,” says Bauserman, “were as well-adjusted as intact family children. This is probably because joint custody provides the child with an opportunity to have ongoing contact with both parents.”
California Divorce Guide – Learn More About: Child Custody in California
It isn’t only the children that benefit; Dr. Bauserman found that parents who share custody tend to have lower levels of conflict with the other parent. One of the arguments against shared custody is that it exposes children to ongoing conflict; the opposite is true, however. Even when non-custodial parents have visitation rights, it still aids in the adjustment and well being of the child.
This does not mean that every child would benefit from spending time with each parent or that doing so will not be detrimental. An example: Jennifer McIntosh, associate professor and clinical psychologist from La Trobe University’s School of Public Health and Family Transitions found that “rigid arrangements of any kind, often fueled by acrimony and poor cooperation, and set out in court orders, are associated with higher depressive and anxiety symptoms in children and this form of living became something children often sought to change.”
According to the study, increased irritability and “more vigilant efforts…to watch and stay near the resident parent” were demonstrated in children under two who stayed with the non-resident parent overnight one or more times per week. In children age two to three, overnight care with the non-resident parent was associated with lower levels of persistence and behavioral difficulties. By age four to five, these effects were no longer evident.
If your child is this young, it may be in his/her best interest to have a consistent nighttime routine and that one parent have primary custody, with the other getting daytime visitation. The point is, though, that shared custody can, and does work, if parents are committed to acting in their best interests.
In some cases, joint child custody or even visitation is not in the child’s best interests; most of the time, however, it is more beneficial for a child to have both parents involved in his life in some capacity. Custody laws <insert link to article 5> are aimed at providing the best situation for a child with separated parents.