Domestic Violence, Substance Abuse, and Child Abuse in Humanistic Child Custody Mediation

Domestic Violence, Substance Abuse, and Child Abuse in Humanistic Child Custody Mediation

By: Toran Hansen, Alexia Georgakopoulos, and Lizyvette Ramos

Previous episodes of domestic violence (DV), substance abuse (SA), or child abuse (CA) are of particular concern to the court and involve special mediation protocols. Mediators in child custody must be sensitive to the needs of children and co-parents, particularly in cases involving trauma. Mediators handling these types of cases must be aware of relevant issues to effectively manage a custodial plan agreement, such as children’s safety and best interest, emotional concerns and strong feelings, communication, reporting the abuse to law enforcement, power imbalances, unhealthy relationships, and shuttle diplomacy.

This study was conducted in a California Superior Court (Family Court Services for child custody). The data collected from case files included: co-parents’ history of DV, SA, and CA, and the mediation result. The data were coded in a binary fashion and analyzed quantitatively using SPSS statistical software. The principal hypothesis under investigation was to determine if parents that reported historical incidents of DV, SA, or CA were less likely to get more complex mediation agreements (Result). This study also considered the impact that shuttle diplomacy had on mediation outcomes for those parents with historical incidents of DV.

The main finding is that it is possible to conduct a mediation in severe trauma cases. With a statistically significant finding, this study makes it clear that reported historical incidents of DV, SA, and CA negatively impact mediation outcomes. This study conveys that offering shuttle diplomacy to DV survivors is a reasonable alternative to traditional mediation.

This study provides important and practical findings that advance mediation scholarship, particularly regarding mediation cases with a history of asymmetrical power and trauma. This highly-emotional and context-sensitive form of mediation calls for the humanistic mediation model. Repairing fractured relationships, maintaining respectful and peaceful relationships, and keeping ongoing reciprocal communication are beneficial to all concerned, particularly the children.

Keywords: Humanistic ▪ Child Custody ▪ Mediation ▪ Domestic Violence ▪ Substance Abuse ▪ Child Abuse ▪ Trauma