CONSIDERATION DIVORCE

Prepared by: Elizabeth Musi anak E'pie

                      Munirah Binti Mohd Jalani

1.0 INTRODUCTION

According to Beaman. B. (2004), divorce is about the dissolution of marriage, it is a common occurrence today.  Here are the reasons why divorce occurs include economics, unrealistic expectations and the law.  For the economics, there is no financial support from marriage partner whether from husband or wife.  An entire family working together is no longer necessary for the family to survive financially.  Unrealistic expectation is referring too many spouse do not rely on each other for financial support, they rely to each for understanding, nurturance, affection and sexual gratification instead.  Basically, each spouse may rely on the other for happiness.  When the unrealistic expectation of total satisfaction is not met, one or both spouses begin looking to others outside the marriage to meet their needs. Some peoples are divorce because of the law. It’s mean; they are having the proof and evidence to get divorce.  A divorce is not a difficult thing to get legally.

2.0 ANALIZING

2.1 Demographic Trends in Marriage and Relationships

Demographic statistics reveal an interesting glimpse into modern American marriage patterns and relationships. According to Cherlin (2004), the social norms surrounding marriage in the US have weakened within recent decades, a process he terms the deinstitutionalization of marriage. Cherlin notes the following associated demographic trends, higher rates of childbirth outside of marriage, increased rates of cohabitation, and shifting cultural perspectives toward marriage. An example marriage shifted from being viewed as an institution to being viewed as a companionate relationship that is the backdrop for individualism and romance.  However, despite the deinstitutionalization of marriage, marriage is generally valued within American society, and many couples continue to want to marry. According to the US Census Bureau (2006), in 2006, among US citizens aged 15 and over, 50.4% were currently married, 6.4% were widowed, 10.5% were divorced, 2.3% were separated, and 30.5% were single, never married.

A closer look at demographic statistics reveals numerous trends that have contributed to diverse marital and relationship patterns within the population. First, people are getting married at later ages than in years past and therefore are spending a greater proportion of their young adult years as unmarried adults. In 2006, the median age at first marriage in the United States was 25.9 years for women and 27.5 years for men (US Census Bureau 2006). Second, couples are more likely to live together either before or instead of marriage (Seltzer 2000). Together, these trends have contributed to higher numbers of households consisting of unmarried partners. For example, in 1990, the number of households with unmarried partners was 3.2 million, and this number increased to 5.5 million by the 2000 Census (0.6 million of which consisted of same-sex partners; US Census Bureau 2001).

Higher rates of divorce also have contributed to changing patterns of marriage and couple relationships. Since the 1970s, more marriages end in divorce than end in the death of a partner, and current statistics suggest that about one in four of all marriages will end within the first 7 years (Pinsof 2002). Pinsof writes that factors influencing the shift to more marriages ending in divorce include the changing roles of women, legal and value changes that have made divorces easier to obtain, and the longer lifespan of both men and women. Regarding the latter, it is important to note that older adults may have significant reasons, such as economic issues or pressure from family members, to prefer cohabitation to remarriage if they are divorced or widowed (Brown et al. 2005).  In light of the numerous demographic changes that have impacted modern marriages. Pinsof (2002) recommends that marital theory needs to become pair-bonding theory.

2.2 The Situation can consider as divorce in marriage

The situation that show divorce occurs in marriage is when a couple lives apart from six months to two years, has differences that they cannot overcome and has tried to reconcile but failed.  Another situation that we can consider as divorce is based on fault such as impotence, bigamy, adultery, desertion for a year or more, habitual drunkenness for two or more years, drug use for two or more years, attempted murder, physical and mental cruelty, conviction of a crime and transmission of an STD.

2.3 Act and ethical of divorce

Psychologists providing therapy also need to be aware of state law that may require authorizations from both custodial parents before treating a child. Similarly, state laws may require that all present and both custodial parents authorize the release confidential information.

Psychologists should serve the role of helping the system consider the various options that are appropriate for the child.  The psychologist can educate lawyers, particularly those charged with advocating for what is in the best interests of the child, about various options and their likely impact on the children.

Psychologists can brainstorm solutions that are functional remedies and, perhaps, outside the scope of legal remedies typically considered by the court. For example, instead of fighting about who has authority for the decision, parents who are seeking from the court the authority for sole decision making on educational issues can be helped to craft a process for making a more child-centered decision such as utilizing an impartial educational consultant for input about what factors they need to consider and what might make most sense for the child given his or her educational needs.

Besides that, psychologists providing services to families of divorce need to help children have a voice in the adjudication process, yet this does not necessarily mean that we should advocate for what a child wants. Freud, Goldstein, & Solnit (1973) had been criticized as being long on theory and short on empirical support. Current standards have evolved that include other interests as well. According to Cheeseman (2007), guidelines involve the child’s preferences and needs, the ability of the parent to meet the child’s needs, the ability of the arrangements and the respective parents to provide a stable environment, include the scope of available servicing, maintaining community, educational, and social involvements of the child, providing for the other parent to maintain a salutary relationship and provision for any special needs.

Cheeseman allows considerations of options so Hobson’s choices (A or B) can be avoided. Being less an advocate for one party only, the psychologist can offer a more comprehensive plan to the court, with differing weights assigned to the Cheeseman factors depending on the specific case. If there then develops a common understanding that what is in the child’s best interests is to have a safe and healthy relationship with both parents who also communicate with one another, then divorce including the legal dissolution of marriage should not change what is central to the healthy upbringing of a child. Psychologists in all divorce service roles can then help divorcing spouses structure and define their relationship solely as parents in a way that fosters healthy child centered communication and parental decision making that is not contaminated by spousal anger, conflict, and hostility.

2.4 Advantages of divorce

Divorce can be positive if it leads to an end of physical and emotional abuse because this abuse is worse than divorce itself.   Children of divorce are usually more psychological aware than their peers and their tend to be more mature and be an independent can lead them to make better life choices especially in high school.  Divorce can be something that motivates children enjoys going school because it is an escape from home.  They work hard to get their problems and end up being successful students.  That’s why they can get excellent grades in their academic performance

2.5 Disadvantages of divorce

The person that suffers of negative effects when divorce occurs between father and mother is the child. Commonly, children tend to feel shock and disbelief, denial, anger at one or both parents, worry about who will care for them and how they will be cared for, worry over losing a relationship with the non-custodial parent, stomachaches, headaches, fatigue, embarrassment when other people learn of divorce, guilt over feeling responsible for the divorce or at choosing one parent to live with over the over.  The children also experience of depression.  It will be revealed by a change in eating habit, a lack of concentration, daydreaming and intense, frequent cry and feeling different and isolated from peers.  They have a sense of maturity caused by an increase in responsibilities that result from the custodial parent’s need to work full-time.

Another impact to the children is developing of negative behavior.  For the girl, they have more somatic symptoms especially stomachaches and headaches, more likely to cry, more likely to lean on a person of the opposite sex which may lead to teen pregnancy and recover from divorce more quickly than boys but have more problems in step families.  For the boy, they are tend to act out their anger and aggression, may be bullies or problems in the classroom, do not recover quickly and tend to show serious problems over a long period of time and tend to fight more with their mothers.

3.0 DICUSSION

Psychologists who treat or consult to families of divorce can easily fall into the role of functioning as advocates for their patients.  Counselor should avoid Countertransference Problems.  Knowing one’s own unresolved family-of-origin issues, personal biases, and interests, as well as having a stable current family situation, is important in functioning without undue counter transferential issues arising.

The psychologist’s alliance to his or her respective client and the representations of that client about the spouse and other concerned parties can cause the clinician to move far beyond one’s usual role and even demonize one parent or the other, especially if one parent has a diagnosable mental disorder.  If one’s own situation is tumultuous or if issues arise that resonates with one’s past, they may become court issues an occurrence that can lead to professionally disastrous results which it was stated by Pipes, Holstein, & Aguirre (2005). Knowing one’s blind spots and securing psychotherapy, case consultation, and supervision can help in one’s continuing skill development. Keeping current one’s malpractice insurance and insurance against board complaints also can be invaluable if a complaint is filed.

As psychologists venture into new professional roles, they also need to make sure that they have the appropriate knowledge, education, training, experience, and skills.  Although there are many training opportunities to learn collaborative divorce and mediation, there are fewer opportunities to be trained in the art of parent coordination or parent counseling.

These different roles each require specific training, and each has different expectations and standards for competent practice. Additionally, one needs to assess whether one’s background and temperament are appropriate for this work, even if one takes a formal training program which is likely to be only a week or less in duration. That’s mean, if one’s clinical training and experience is primarily with adults, it may be inappropriate to function without supervision as a neutral child specialist, child custody evaluator, parent counselor, or parent coordinator where a good deal of the work will be directly related to the best interests of the child.

Psychotherapist must Provide Useful Information. In order that the psychologist explain these limits and boundaries clearly and provide true informed consent (Barnett, Wise, Johnson-Greene, & Bucky, 2008), he or she ought to be clear that there is a difference in kind between a fact and an expert witness.  Terms of art that are common for a psychologist might be easily misunderstood by others. The psychologist who is conveying information must be clear in his or her communications and sensitive to any quizzical looks or untoward responses. Through understandings of the Daubert-Joiner-Kumho trilogy, Daubert v. Merrill Dow Pharmaceuticals, (1993), General Electric Company Psychologists have a responsibility to offer parents, lawyers, and the court useful recommendations and opinions based on our knowledge of child development and parenting and the impact of parental conflict, poor communication, and parental psychiatric diagnoses on children. This knowledge must be based on an impartial and informed reading of the relevant literature.

Based on Hess. A.K (2008), still has an obligation regarding any released information. The information released must be helpful to the process and in a form that is clear and less likely to be misused. For example, simply releasing a diagnosis without explanation or qualifying one’s remarks does not demonstrate responsibility. Custody and access decisions can hinge on the legal system’s interpretation of the implication of a diagnosis.  For example bipolar disorder, major depression, schizophrenia, narcissistic personality inferring an inability to parent, when simply, the diagnosis itself may have little objective predictability as to the ability of the parent to have healthy and safe interactions with the child.

Counselor also must avoiding an authorized Practice of Law.  Psychologists must know enough law to function competently but not practice law or give legal advice, even if holding a law degree, because that is not the role in which he or she is engaged.

Additionally, psychologists who are writing parenting plans or practicing mediation need to be careful to avoid the unauthorized practice of law, as they do not have the authority to draft legal agreements. Instead, understandings and joint parenting decisions can be documented so that the lawyer can memorialize them in a legal separation agreement. Organized psychology and psychologists in practice need to continue to educate the legal profession about the value and use of our expertise such as at times in non-psychotherapist roles. This can be done by offering continuing education programs for attorneys through local, state, and regional associations.

Taking great care in communications to make sure the psychologist misunderstood to others people.  The psychologist who is conveying information must be clear in his or her communications and sensitive to any quizzical looks or untoward responses.

Organized psychology needs to build upon previous interdisciplinary contacts and summits by creating a joint meeting with the American Bar Association (ABA), the APA, scholars, and practitioners to develop consistent expectations, materials, and standards of training and practice for the varying roles of psychologists working with families of divorce. This information can then be widely disseminated to psychologists and family attorneys as the recommendations of this joint body. 

Training opportunities should be made widely available to educate psychologists about the ethical dilemmas of working with families of divorce and to offer model agreements for psychologists to use when in different roles such as organized psychology could ideally sponsor or help underwrite these training opportunities, perhaps through the Practice Directorate and Science Directorate teaming up to fund scholarly conferences, Practicing psychologists need to maintain high levels of situational awareness about their role, boundaries, behavior, and even their office policies and procedures. Supervision, training, and consultation can help keep skills and awareness up to date.

Well thought out and carefully designed office and administrative policies and procedures can help avoid the pitfalls of inappropriately releasing information or accidentally billing insurance when not directly diagnosing or treating their clients for a mental disorder, as this could be viewed as insurance fraud. Similarly, one can assure that records are appropriate and complete and that client agreements are clear and comprehensive, indicating whether testimony may be offered while also clearly delineating fees and billing policies.

4.0 CONCLUSION

As a conclusion, divorce issues in marriage should be handled by professional counsellor ethically.  Implement the Act and Ethical of Divorce to every couple that wants to divorce.  That’s mean; the divorce must be solved based on it.  Permanent divorce is something that we must do ethically and accurately.  Divorce has its own pro and contra perspective.  That mean, divorce is reflecting to separation between husband and wife caused by reasonable and logic.  They do not have any commitment anymore.  The relationship as a husband and wife is not functioning anymore.  Solve the divorce by attending family counselling is appropriate.  At the same time, counselor giving help ethically.

 5.0 REFERENCES.

Beaman. B. (2004) Divorce: A Handbook for Parents and Teachers. An American Tradition.

Zimmerman. J., Hess. K. A., & McGarrah. A. N. (2009). Professional Psychology: Research and Practice. Focus On Ethics. Ethical and Professional Considerations in Divorce and Child Custody Cases. Vol. 40, No. 6. America.

Murray, C. E., & Murray, T. L. (2009). Reconsidering the term marriage in Marriage and Family Therapy. Contemporary Family Therapy. Pg. 31, 209-221.