Taking account of the ‘to and fro’ of children’s experiences in family law

Abstract

This paper outlines the possibilities and tensions that emerge in legal and social discourse when popular images and narratives of children as 'at risk' are juxtaposed with more revised constructions of the child as capable and autonomous. The paper explores this shift in representation of children against a background of extensive family law reform currently under way in Australia. It then reports insights from a pilot study which found that children 'to and fro' between accounts of hurt and powerlessness associated with divorce, and their desire to participate in the processes and decisions taking place around them. The paper posits that discourses of participation taken up in research, practice and policy need to acknowledge a dialectic relationship between agency and vulnerability if we are to respond to children in ways that include rather than marginalise. The paper concludes by highlighting some of the challenges that exist for researchers and practitioners seeking to be open to new ways of thinking about children's lives -ways based on an ethic that refuses the kind of normalisation and neat analyses conventionally pursued through research endeavours.

The Changing Status of Children Within Family Law from Vision to Reality?

“…74 Notably, children in our FRC study who had participated in child consultations also reported that they did not feel heard. Brooke's comments are illustrative: 69 Graham and Fitzgerald (2006); Fitzgerald and Graham (2010); Graham and Fitzgerald (2010). Parkinson and Cashmore (2008).…”

Two homes that used to be one: What has grief got to do with it?

“…Consistent with the definitions offered above, such authors term the ensuing adjustment process to be symptomatic of a grief response or a grieving process. Furthermore, and specific to children, the literature frequently cites that much of what we witness in the adjustment of children following separation such as sadness, anger, confusion and guilt for example, (Bagshaw, 1998 ;Graham, 2004;Hetherington & Clingempeel, 1992;McIntosh, 2003;Worden, 1996) can be thought of as emotional responses consistent with a grief response (Graham, 2004;Graham & Fitzgerald, 2006;Worden, 1996). Therefore, the linking of loss and separation, as this thesis does, is not in itself a new idea.…”

“…argued that this was a fear-based response resulting from the growing belief that children would be severely impacted in the long-term by trends of family breakdowns. What has ensued, over five decades of research into the impact of separation on children, is a vast literature that is, at times, both conflicted (Ahrons, 2006;Graham & Fitzgerald, 2006), and lacking consensus as to the extent or nature of the deleterious effects of separation on children (Demo & Fine, 2010). …”

“…This is the significance of interpretation within an IPA stance as applied to this research; however, it is acknowledged that interpretation has another level of complexity in regards to an adult interpreting the meanings offered by children. It is not the data gathering process that potentially disadvantages children, but the analysis and interpretation of their data (Morrow & Richards, 1996) as well as the sensitivity to which we approach that task as researchers (Hill, 2006;Thomas & O'Kane, 1998).Since the 1990s, it has become increasingly accepted that children should be directly Exploration of children's data using the DPM allowed the examination of a commonly preconceived notion that separation is a loss experience (Doka, 1989;Gerrard, 2002;Goldman, 2014;Kissane, 2002;Parkes, 1971;Spillman et al, 2004;Worden, 2009) and the ensuing adjustment is a grief process for children (Graham, 2004;Graham & Fitzgerald, 2006;Worden, 1996). This is seen when children are observed to display emotions consistent with grieving, such as sadness, anger, confusion and guilt (Bagshaw, 1998 ;Graham, 2004;Hetherington & Clingempeel, 1992;McIntosh, 2003;Worden, 1996).…”

“…The impetus for a large body of international research that began in the late 1960s, was in seeking to understand how children, rather than adults, would be impacted by separation (Graham & Fitzgerald, 2006;Hilton & Kopera-Frye, 2004). It has been argued that the response of the research community was a 'fear-based response' which paralleled alarmist views in the broader society over trends of rising divorce rates in many western non-Catholic countries, such as the United States of America, England and Australia.…”