P.A.D. in Belgium
LAST_UPDATED2 Ecrit par Benoit Van Dieren Jeudi, 11 Juin 2009 15:45
Belgium. Benoit van Dieren, Ph.D., a psychologist mediator and expert identified PAS in some of the families he assessed in Brussels. He has started to educated mental health and legal professionals regarding this topic. He said (in very basic english, sorry):
As a professionnal spécialised in very conflictual parental conflicts during or after separation, and having (during about ten years) followed , sometimes personnally, “alienated” parents and sometimes children, I can say that my own experience and the theoretical study of this matter, convinced me that the concept is consistant, specially if we consider the symptoms of the child.
I have always perceived this “disorder” as a systemic problem, i.e a problem that can be understood only if we consider the complex and moving relationships between AT LEAST 3 poles: the child one, the father one and the mother one, plus the other elements gravitating around these poles, such as the enlarged families, friends, , new partners, and, last but not the least: the judicial and psycho-social system.
In our latin countries we are reluctant to analyse and solve the human problems in binary terms : a good and a bad parent, or a sane and isane one, or a guilty and a victim one , and so on.
In the approach of such problems, the focus is put (by the judicial and psycho-social institutions) mainly on the concept of “the best interest of the child”, and consequently, on the concept of “Child in havy danger”.
In our country, the main question is “ is this child,( rejecting his or her parent) in physical or psychological danger or not ?
For long years, until recently, the main belief ( mainly among psychologists) was that such “phénomenons” have to be treated as a “crisis” that could be solved by different kinds of therapy, guidance....and by time.
All the methods used had to be the most “compréhensive” ones, and the “taboo” was to point a guilty or insane parent. An insane parent has to be helped and not condemned or punished.
For several years, such “strong beliefs” began slowly to be eroded by certain associations ( like “ La Mouette”) who regularly invited some foreigners psychologists and teachers, mainly Hubert Van Ghijseghem who began to convince a growing number of professionals about the reality of the “parental alienation” phenomenon.
Some others european professionnals ( as myself) relayed the diffusion of the concept for example by my website ( www.separation.be ) and by lectures given in differents places in Belgium and abroad.
For nine month , I make part of an “ multidisciplinary inquiery and research group” ( one high magistrate, a lawyer and mediator, a lawyer and mysellf) who has interviewed a large amount of 7 professionnal groups concerned by the conflictual parental separations. (from the policemen to the magistrates)
The interviews were focused on the question : “ How do you detect , and what do you do when you are in facing a problem of “ ( High risq of) loss of parental link”
We are beginning to make the synthesis of all these interviews.
Conclusion :
Through all these experience, research and professionnal contacts I can only give partial and subjective observations :
The concept of parentl alienation is more and more recognised and used in courts and ( very rarely) in psychological therapy.
The most reluctant professionnal group towards this concept is the psychologist professionnals.
Nevetherless, I can say that globally ( including by medias) the concept is presently rapidly taken more and more into account .
A growing tendency (that I try to promote and is already giving substantial results) is to try to find a combined ( judicial and psychological) , coordonated and rapid action when an “alienation phenomenon” is in sight.