A divorce or separation is one of the most stressful life events, which requires a new organization of family life and an assessment of the child’s best interest. As a family breaks apart, the parents must agree on the care and upbringing of the child. Newest family legislation from 2019 encourages both parents to be equally involved in the care and upbringing of their children after the divorce, and therefore joint custody is a priority decision, taking the child’s best interest into account. During the divorce, there are social work centres and courts which are supposed to help the affected family members and provide social and legal security. In my master’s thesis I researched psychological assessment of families in divorce proceedings, the professional criteria with which competent institutions and professionals follow the principle of “the child’s best interests”, and joint custody as a possible form of future family relations between children and parents. I addressed the role of psychologists in the social work centres and the importance of multidisciplinarity and cooperation of different profiles of experts who work with families in divorce proceedings. During my research I conducted the focus group method, which was participated by psychologists employed at social work centres (N = 21). I also performed semi-structured interviews with a senior judge, judiciary experts in the field of family psychology and psychiatry, and a social worker. The results represent a set of professional criteria that should be followed by the psychological assessment while working with families. I also presented the current situation and needs in the field of psychological assessment and guidelines for its future professional development. In the conclusion of my thesis, based on my results and examination of professional literature, I suggest a model of psychological assessment of the families during divorce proceedings, emphasizing the importance of the individual approach, because despite all of the advantages, joint custody is not the correct arrangement for every family. My master thesis results, professional literature and research in the field of joint custody contributes to the theory as well as psychological practice. With the presented guidelines I would also like to contribute to professional development and cooperation between different experts.
|