The Routledge International Handbook of Shared Parenting and Best Interest of the Child

This multidisciplinary volume offers an essential, comprehensive study of perspectives on the scope and application of the best interests of the child and focuses mainly on its application in relation to child custody.

With expert contributions from psychological, sociological and legal perspectives, it offers scientific analysis and debate on whether it should be the primary consideration in deciding child custody cases in cases of divorce or separation or whether it should be one of several primary considerations. It explores complex dilemmas inherent in shared parenting and whether the advantages it offers children are sufficient when compared to attributing custody to one parent and limiting visitation rights of the other. Offering a comprehensive analysis of this complex topic, chapters provide detailed insight into the current state of research in this area, as well as expert guidelines aimed at resolving the controversies when parents agree or disagree over their children’s living arrangements. Cutting-edge topics explored include: transnational shared parenting; alternative dispute resolution; breastfeeding parents; religious disputes between parents and the psychological, social and economic factors that affect shared parenting.

The Routledge International Handbook of Shared Parenting and Best Interest of the Child will be essential reading for scholars and graduate students in law, psychology, sociology and economics interested in shared parenting and family law.

Dr José Manuel de Torres Perea is Associate Professor of Civil Law at the University of Málaga, Spain, specializing in Family Law. He is the author of significant contributions on shared parenting and the best interests of the child in Spanish legal literature.

Dr Edward Kruk is Associate Professor of Social Work at the University of British Columbia, specializing in child and family policy. He has published extensively on shared parental responsibility, child custody determination, parental alienation, family mediation and the role of fathers in child development. He is the inaugural president of the International Council on Shared Parenting (ICSP).

Dr Margarita Ortiz-Tallo is a Clinical Psychologist and professor of Psychology at the University of Malaga (Spain) and has lectured in several countries. She has written numerous manuscripts published in scientific journals, several specialist books on psychopathology and books for the general public on different topics of psychology.