Parents Acting Badly
Thursday, October 12, 2023 at 9:00AM 
With special guest:
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Dr Jennifer Harman
… in conversation with Bill Kable
Why is it that we never see young animals rejecting a caring parent in the way we see some children acting? The behaviour of the other parent may be the cause and this strange behaviour may be due to Parental Alienation.
Our guest today is Associate Professor Jennifer Harman who tells us that the problem of Parental Alienation is all too common and getting worse around the world yet it is still decried by some as “junk science”.
Jennifer tells us that the scientific analysis of Parental Alienation is still at a beginning stage. The research is still focussing on the description of Parental Alienation because we have not yet reached the predictive stage. This is the normal scientific approach to research and can be compared with where we are up to with the topic du jour, domestic violence. However no-one denies the existence of domestic violence in the way they once did.
We ask Dr Harman why does Parental Alienation occur and what are the danger signs the other parent should be looking for? What is the difference between Parental Alienation and a situation where children have good reasons for not wanting to be with one of their parents? Are there differences in the ways that some fathers alienate their children from the way that mothers act in this situation?
The answers to these questions and many more are set out in Dr Harman’s new book Parents Acting Badly: How institutions and societies promote the alienation of children from their loving families. Written with co-author Dr Zeynep Biringen the book examines Parental Alienation from a social and cultural perspective, showing that institutions such as the Family Court and specialist interventionists such as counsellors, therapists and lawyers are currently making it worse rather than being of assistance.
A great way to find your way in this area which affects so many in our society is to listen to Dr Harman in today’s program. If Parental Alienation doesn’t affect you it most likely affects someone in your family, someone you work with or a friend. It is that widespread and since it is the next generation we are subjecting to abuse there is not too much more important.
Dr Jennifer Harman
Dr Jennifer Harman is an Associate Professor of Psychology at Colorado State University. She is an accomplished and awarded teacher and has published many peer-reviewed articles and textbooks on intimate relationships, such as The Science of Relationships: Answers to your Questions about Dating, Marriage and Family.
Aside from her professional publications, Dr. Harman also writes articles for general audiences, such as The Conversation, and her work is republished on thousands of other news sites (e.g., Associated Press, Raw Story). Her 2016 TEDx talk on parental alienation, has had thousands of views.
She was motivated to write this book and apply her expertise in social psychology to better understand and find solutions for parental alienation because she has been a target of it herself.
Song selection by our guest: Constellations by Jack Johnson
Note: This program is an encore presentation of the one aired on 12 May 2016.