The Problem - Parental Alienation

The cause - Numerous factors

The Cure - Raising Awareness

The problem of Parental alienation is multifaceted. The professionals who deal with these cases need to be aware of many of the misnomers and assuptions which lead to errors in case concepts. 

One such example was a question about using individual therapy for  a young child. The assumption is that using individual therapy somehow reduces the exposure of the conflict of the parents. The reality is that the children are not spared the conflict and therapy needs to address that reality. The other and possibly more impactful aspect is that if the child observes the parent complaining about the other parent, that is distressing, but if made to perform in individual therapy, the children are now forced into participating, which is much more harmful to the child.

The courts and therapist need to be aware of this aspect, because what is meant for protecting the children, (performing individual therapy instead of family therapy), can actuatlly make them a target for  more distress.