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Critical Details To Understand About Psychological Testing In Child Custody
Child custody cases have been on the rise over the years due to many divorce cases being presented in court. However, solving child custody cases has proven quite challenging for judicial systems. This is because of the significant impacts child custody cases have on parenting. Child custody cases should be well handled to ensure the child’s emotional stability gets protected, even as they go through the unfortunate event of the parents’ divorce. During a child custody case, the family court is tasked with allocating responsibilities to parents to ensure the children remain comfortable even after the divorce. This includes the provision of basic and emotional needs for a child. The court also makes sure the children’s interests are safeguarded all through and after the completion of the divorce proceedings. The court ascertains this by first carrying out a psychological evaluation on the child and parents. The family court may order the parties to sit down with a psychologist who will evaluate their mental wellness. The results provided will help the judge to make a sound decision concerning the child custody case. The psychologist is well trained and skilled in performing custody evaluations. The psychologists are also at liberty to obtain assistance from other related sources in case they are faced with a difficult case.
During psychological testing in child custody, the psychologist will interview the parents and assess their personality traits. They may also check their previous health records to get more information on their mental stability. The psychologist will also interview the children to get more information about their adjustment and their bond with their parents. The interviews are carried out separately to avoid influence from either party. When carrying out psychological testing in child custody, the psychologist may also other parties such as neighbors, teachers, nannies, and family members, among others. The interaction between the parents and the child also speaks volumes during the psychological testing in child custody. This observation can also be made during home visits by the psychologist.
The mental health expert will then offer their opinion based on the testimonies given. The psychological testing results are then presented in court as evidence for determining child custody arrangements. The main reason the court orders for psychological testing in child custody is to enable them to understand the parents’ parenting capabilities. This will ensure the children are brought up in a suitable environment regardless of the differences between their parents. For excellent results during psychological testing in child custody, the court needs to seek the assistance of a qualified and skilled forensic psychologist. The psychologist should also be detail-oriented and a critical thinker who can analyze a situation and give the right judgment. For instance, in child custody cases, the psychologist should observe and listen to all parties and critically analyze their testimonies to point out critical issues before the court. An excellent psychologist should have handled similar cases before and have the required experience to provide accurate results during the psychological testing process.