Statistics for Sheila

A study of 522 teenage girls, for example, found that girls in
divorced families committed more delinquent acts (eg, drug abuse,
larceny, skipping school) than their counterparts in intact families.
A recent book on street-gangs reveals that most gang members in
America come from female-headed households. A study of British
communities found a direct statistical link between single parenthood
and virtually every major type of crime, including mugging, violence
against strangers, car theft and burglary.

A 1987 study of 72 adolescent murderers discovered that 75 percent of
them had divorced or never-married parents. And a 1987 study of 108
violent rapists, all repeat offenders, found that 60 percent came from
single-parent homes. Or consider a study which tracked every child
born on the Hawaiian island of Kauai in 1955 for 30 years. It found
that five out of six delinquents with an adult criminal record came
from families where a parent - almost always the father - was absent.
Bobbi
************************************************** ***
Old Saudi saying: "My father rode a camel. I drive a car.
My son flies a jet airplane. His son will ride a camel."
Peak Oil - coming soon to a neighborhood near you.
************************************************** ***

And some more

"Bobbi" wrote in message
...
A study of 522 teenage girls, for example, found that girls in
divorced families committed more delinquent acts (eg, drug abuse,
larceny, skipping school) than their counterparts in intact families.
A recent book on street-gangs reveals that most gang members in
America come from female-headed households. A study of British
communities found a direct statistical link between single parenthood
and virtually every major type of crime, including mugging, violence
against strangers, car theft and burglary.

A 1987 study of 72 adolescent murderers discovered that 75 percent of
them had divorced or never-married parents. And a 1987 study of 108
violent rapists, all repeat offenders, found that 60 percent came from
single-parent homes. Or consider a study which tracked every child
born on the Hawaiian island of Kauai in 1955 for 30 years. It found
that five out of six delinquents with an adult criminal record came
from families where a parent - almost always the father - was absent.
Bobbi
************************************************** ***
Old Saudi saying: "My father rode a camel. I drive a car.
My son flies a jet airplane. His son will ride a camel."
Peak Oil - coming soon to a neighborhood near you.
************************************************** ***


This study, conducted in Arizona, showed what the wishes of each parent was,
and what the resulting custody decision was:

Fathers Wishes.

Joint Custody: 74%
Paternal Sole Custody: 15%
Maternal Sole Custody: 11%

Mother's wishes.

Maternal Sole Custody: 70%
Joint Custody: 30%

For the conflicting families (Father wanted joint custody, mother wanted
sole custody).

Maternal Sole Custody awarded: 77%
Joint Custody awarded: 23%

(Source: Determining the Impact of Joint Custody on Divorcing Families,
Sanford Braver, associate professor at the Arizona State University)

"The decrees overwhelmingly favored the mother's custody wishes: 67% of
mothers obtained both the legal and residential custody arrangements they
desired compared with only 15%
of fathers; meanwhile, only 8% of mothers (vs 37% of fathers) found neither
stipulation to correspond to their preference."

(Source: Gender Differences in Satisfaction with Divorce Decrees, Sheets &
Braver, 1993)
From the Maccoby and Mnookin Study

Anne Mitchell recently posted these next statistics for California:

From Dividing the Child: Social & Legal Dilemmas of Custody - Harvard Press,
1992 - Eleanor Maccoby (Psych Dept. Stanford) and Robert Mnookin (Stanford
Law School)
Based on their survey of nearly 1000 divorcing couples in San Mateo and
Santa Clara counties:

PHYSICAL CUSTODY OUTCOME WHEN PARENTS' REQUESTS CONFLICT:

Mother's Request: Mother Mother Joint
Father's Request: Joint Father Father
-------------------------------------------------------
Who got Custody:

Mother 68.6% 46.2% 0.0%
Joint 25.8% 36.5% 42.9%
Father 2.4% 9.6% 42.9%
Split 3.2% 7.7% 14.2%


PHYSICAL CUSTODY OUTCOME WHEN PARENTS' REQUESTS DO NOT CONFLICT:

Mother's Request: Mother Joint Father
Father's Request: Mother Joint Father
-------------------------------------------------------
Who got Custody:

Mother 89.4% 30.7% 12.3%
Joint 6.5% 54.0% 6.1%
Father 2.8% 8.0% 75.5%
Split 1.3% 7.3% 6.1%

Comment: Note that even when BOTH the mother and the father requested sole
paternal custody, sole maternal custody was awarded in 12% of the cases.

Now combine those numbers with the following and we see where the problem
lies.

"37.9% of fathers receive no access/visitation" (pg. 6, col. 2, 6, lines 4 &
5) Child Support & Alimony: 1989 Series P-60, No.173,
Issued September 1991 Pages 6 & 7 of the 1989 Census - Current Population
Reports

"Between 25% - 33% of mothers denied visits" (pg. 451, col. 2, 2, lines 11 -
14) Frequency of Visitation by Divorced Fathers:
Differences in Reports by Fathers and Mothers - Sanford H. Braver, Ph.D.,
Sharlene A. Wolchik, Ph.D., Irwin M. Sandler, Ph.D., Bruce S. Fogas,
Ph.D., Daria Zvetina, M.Ed. American Journal of Orthopsychiatry

"40% of mothers reported that they had interfered with the non- custodial
father's visitation on at least one occasion, to punish their
ex-spouse" (pg. 449, Col. 2, 1, lines 3 - 6 citing Fullton, 1979) Frequency
of Visitation by Divorced Fathers: Differences in
Reports by Fathers and Mothers - Sanford H. Braver, Ph.D., Sharlene A.
Wolchik, Ph.D., Irwin M. Sandler, Ph.D., Bruce S. Fogas, Ph.D., Daria
Zvetina, M.Ed., American Journal of Orthopsychiatry

Overall, approximately 50% of mothers "see no value in the father's
continued contact with his children" (pg. 125, 4, lines 1 and 2)
Surviving the Breakup - Joan Berlin Kelly and Judith S. Wallerstein

"Unilateral abuse of parental custodial power is more common in court
ordered sole custody situations." (pg. 4, col. 1, 1, lines 17 -
20) Child Custody and Parental Cooperation - Frank Williams, M.D., Dir.
Psychiatry - Cedar-Sinai - Presented to theAmerican Bar Association,
Family Law Section, August 1987 and January 1988

"Feelings of anger toward their former spouses hindered effective
involvement on the part of the fathers; angry custodial mothers would
sometimes sabotage father's efforts to visit their children" (pg. 442, Col.
1, 1, lines 23 - 27) The Effect of the Post Divorce
Relationship on Paternal Involvement: A Longitudinal Analysis - Constance R.
Ahrons, Ph.D., and Richard B. Miller, Ph.D., American Journal of
Orthopsychiatry, Vol. 63, No. 3, July 1993

"Mothers may prevent visits to retaliate against the fathers for problems in
their marital or post marital relationship" (pg. 1015, Col. 2,
2, lines 5 - 8) Family Ties after Divorce: The Relationship Between Visiting
and Paying Support - Judith A. Seltzer, Nora Shaeffer, Hong-wen
Charing, University of Wisconsin, Journal of Marriage & the Family, Vol. 51,
No. 4, November 1989.

"Our research indicates that most fathers and children who are separated
from each other face barriers to continued interaction" (pg. 675,
Col. 1, 1, Lines 2 - 5) Children's Contact with Absent Parents - Judith A.
Seltzer, University of Wisconsin - Madison and Suzanne M.
Bianchi, U.S. Bureau of the Census

"The former spouse [mother] was the greatest obstacle to having more
frequent contact with the children" (pg. 281, Col. 2, 1, lines 1
- 4) Increasing Our Understanding of Fathers Who Have Infrequent Contact
With Their Children - James R. Dudley, Professor, University North
Carolina, under a grant from Temple University, Family Relations, Vol. 4,
No. 3, July 1991

"Unfortunately, some angry women attempted to use the child's symptomatic
behaviors as proof that the visits were detrimental to the child's
welfare and should therefore be discontinued, distressing the unhappy
children even more" (pg. 126, 2, lines 1 - 5) Surviving the
Breakup, Joan Berlin Kelly and Judith S. Wallerstein, Basic Books

"The court's failure to enforce or expand visitation agreements were a
frequently mentioned complaint" (pg. 281, col. 2, 2, lines 14
- 16) Increasing Our Understanding of Fathers Who Have Infrequent Contact
With Their Children - James R. Dudley, Professor, University North
Carolina, under a grant from Temple University, Family Relations, Vol. 4,
No. 3, July 1991

"Fathers felt their bargaining power to be weaker than the mother's and
mentioned the repeated need for compromise and negotiation to
maintain regular involvement with the children." (pg. 60, 3, lines 13 - 15)
Visitation and the Noncustodial Father - Mary Ann P. Koch,
Carol R. Lowery, Journal of Divorce, Vol. 8, No. 2, Winter 1984

"Most men were dissatisfied with the frequency of visitation" (pg. 54, 4
lines 5) Visitation and the Noncustodial Father - Mary Ann P.
Koch, Carol R. Lowery, Journal of Divorce, Vol. 8, No. 2, Winter 1984

"70% of fathers felt they had too little time with their children." (pg 54,
4, lines 5 - 7) Visitation and the Noncustodial Father - Mary Ann
P. Koch, Carol R. Lowery, Journal of Divorce, Vol. 8, No. 2, Winter 1984

And some more

"Bobbi" wrote in message
...
A study of 522 teenage girls, for example, found that girls in
divorced families committed more delinquent acts (eg, drug abuse,
larceny, skipping school) than their counterparts in intact families.
A recent book on street-gangs reveals that most gang members in
America come from female-headed households. A study of British
communities found a direct statistical link between single parenthood
and virtually every major type of crime, including mugging, violence
against strangers, car theft and burglary.

A 1987 study of 72 adolescent murderers discovered that 75 percent of
them had divorced or never-married parents. And a 1987 study of 108
violent rapists, all repeat offenders, found that 60 percent came from
single-parent homes. Or consider a study which tracked every child
born on the Hawaiian island of Kauai in 1955 for 30 years. It found
that five out of six delinquents with an adult criminal record came
from families where a parent - almost always the father - was absent.
Bobbi
************************************************** ***
Old Saudi saying: "My father rode a camel. I drive a car.
My son flies a jet airplane. His son will ride a camel."
Peak Oil - coming soon to a neighborhood near you.
************************************************** ***


This study, conducted in Arizona, showed what the wishes of each parent was,
and what the resulting custody decision was:

Fathers Wishes.

Joint Custody: 74%
Paternal Sole Custody: 15%
Maternal Sole Custody: 11%

Mother's wishes.

Maternal Sole Custody: 70%
Joint Custody: 30%

For the conflicting families (Father wanted joint custody, mother wanted
sole custody).

Maternal Sole Custody awarded: 77%
Joint Custody awarded: 23%

(Source: Determining the Impact of Joint Custody on Divorcing Families,
Sanford Braver, associate professor at the Arizona State University)

"The decrees overwhelmingly favored the mother's custody wishes: 67% of
mothers obtained both the legal and residential custody arrangements they
desired compared with only 15%
of fathers; meanwhile, only 8% of mothers (vs 37% of fathers) found neither
stipulation to correspond to their preference."

(Source: Gender Differences in Satisfaction with Divorce Decrees, Sheets &
Braver, 1993)
From the Maccoby and Mnookin Study

Anne Mitchell recently posted these next statistics for California:

From Dividing the Child: Social & Legal Dilemmas of Custody - Harvard Press,
1992 - Eleanor Maccoby (Psych Dept. Stanford) and Robert Mnookin (Stanford
Law School)
Based on their survey of nearly 1000 divorcing couples in San Mateo and
Santa Clara counties:

PHYSICAL CUSTODY OUTCOME WHEN PARENTS' REQUESTS CONFLICT:

Mother's Request: Mother Mother Joint
Father's Request: Joint Father Father
-------------------------------------------------------
Who got Custody:

Mother 68.6% 46.2% 0.0%
Joint 25.8% 36.5% 42.9%
Father 2.4% 9.6% 42.9%
Split 3.2% 7.7% 14.2%


PHYSICAL CUSTODY OUTCOME WHEN PARENTS' REQUESTS DO NOT CONFLICT:

Mother's Request: Mother Joint Father
Father's Request: Mother Joint Father
-------------------------------------------------------
Who got Custody:

Mother 89.4% 30.7% 12.3%
Joint 6.5% 54.0% 6.1%
Father 2.8% 8.0% 75.5%
Split 1.3% 7.3% 6.1%

Comment: Note that even when BOTH the mother and the father requested sole
paternal custody, sole maternal custody was awarded in 12% of the cases.

Now combine those numbers with the following and we see where the problem
lies.

"37.9% of fathers receive no access/visitation" (pg. 6, col. 2, 6, lines 4 &
5) Child Support & Alimony: 1989 Series P-60, No.173,
Issued September 1991 Pages 6 & 7 of the 1989 Census - Current Population
Reports

"Between 25% - 33% of mothers denied visits" (pg. 451, col. 2, 2, lines 11 -
14) Frequency of Visitation by Divorced Fathers:
Differences in Reports by Fathers and Mothers - Sanford H. Braver, Ph.D.,
Sharlene A. Wolchik, Ph.D., Irwin M. Sandler, Ph.D., Bruce S. Fogas,
Ph.D., Daria Zvetina, M.Ed. American Journal of Orthopsychiatry

"40% of mothers reported that they had interfered with the non- custodial
father's visitation on at least one occasion, to punish their
ex-spouse" (pg. 449, Col. 2, 1, lines 3 - 6 citing Fullton, 1979) Frequency
of Visitation by Divorced Fathers: Differences in
Reports by Fathers and Mothers - Sanford H. Braver, Ph.D., Sharlene A.
Wolchik, Ph.D., Irwin M. Sandler, Ph.D., Bruce S. Fogas, Ph.D., Daria
Zvetina, M.Ed., American Journal of Orthopsychiatry

Overall, approximately 50% of mothers "see no value in the father's
continued contact with his children" (pg. 125, 4, lines 1 and 2)
Surviving the Breakup - Joan Berlin Kelly and Judith S. Wallerstein

"Unilateral abuse of parental custodial power is more common in court
ordered sole custody situations." (pg. 4, col. 1, 1, lines 17 -
20) Child Custody and Parental Cooperation - Frank Williams, M.D., Dir.
Psychiatry - Cedar-Sinai - Presented to theAmerican Bar Association,
Family Law Section, August 1987 and January 1988

"Feelings of anger toward their former spouses hindered effective
involvement on the part of the fathers; angry custodial mothers would
sometimes sabotage father's efforts to visit their children" (pg. 442, Col.
1, 1, lines 23 - 27) The Effect of the Post Divorce
Relationship on Paternal Involvement: A Longitudinal Analysis - Constance R.
Ahrons, Ph.D., and Richard B. Miller, Ph.D., American Journal of
Orthopsychiatry, Vol. 63, No. 3, July 1993

"Mothers may prevent visits to retaliate against the fathers for problems in
their marital or post marital relationship" (pg. 1015, Col. 2,
2, lines 5 - 8) Family Ties after Divorce: The Relationship Between Visiting
and Paying Support - Judith A. Seltzer, Nora Shaeffer, Hong-wen
Charing, University of Wisconsin, Journal of Marriage & the Family, Vol. 51,
No. 4, November 1989.

"Our research indicates that most fathers and children who are separated
from each other face barriers to continued interaction" (pg. 675,
Col. 1, 1, Lines 2 - 5) Children's Contact with Absent Parents - Judith A.
Seltzer, University of Wisconsin - Madison and Suzanne M.
Bianchi, U.S. Bureau of the Census

"The former spouse [mother] was the greatest obstacle to having more
frequent contact with the children" (pg. 281, Col. 2, 1, lines 1
- 4) Increasing Our Understanding of Fathers Who Have Infrequent Contact
With Their Children - James R. Dudley, Professor, University North
Carolina, under a grant from Temple University, Family Relations, Vol. 4,
No. 3, July 1991

"Unfortunately, some angry women attempted to use the child's symptomatic
behaviors as proof that the visits were detrimental to the child's
welfare and should therefore be discontinued, distressing the unhappy
children even more" (pg. 126, 2, lines 1 - 5) Surviving the
Breakup, Joan Berlin Kelly and Judith S. Wallerstein, Basic Books

"The court's failure to enforce or expand visitation agreements were a
frequently mentioned complaint" (pg. 281, col. 2, 2, lines 14
- 16) Increasing Our Understanding of Fathers Who Have Infrequent Contact
With Their Children - James R. Dudley, Professor, University North
Carolina, under a grant from Temple University, Family Relations, Vol. 4,
No. 3, July 1991

"Fathers felt their bargaining power to be weaker than the mother's and
mentioned the repeated need for compromise and negotiation to
maintain regular involvement with the children." (pg. 60, 3, lines 13 - 15)
Visitation and the Noncustodial Father - Mary Ann P. Koch,
Carol R. Lowery, Journal of Divorce, Vol. 8, No. 2, Winter 1984

"Most men were dissatisfied with the frequency of visitation" (pg. 54, 4
lines 5) Visitation and the Noncustodial Father - Mary Ann P.
Koch, Carol R. Lowery, Journal of Divorce, Vol. 8, No. 2, Winter 1984

"70% of fathers felt they had too little time with their children." (pg 54,
4, lines 5 - 7) Visitation and the Noncustodial Father - Mary Ann
P. Koch, Carol R. Lowery, Journal of Divorce, Vol. 8, No. 2, Winter 1984

It is truly astonishing that, in the face of statistics like those
below, the policy in most Western countries is to make it as easy as
possible for mothers to establish fatherless families. One of the biggest
incentives that has been created for mothers to do this is the existence of
so-called "child support." In the U.S. this is tax-free income that mothers
qualify for by expelling their husbands from the family. (And, of course,
there are other incentives, such as the existence of community property laws
that give divorcing spouses half of the marital assets, regardless of whose
labors created those assets.)

The bottom line is that fathers are being forced to subsidize exactly
the kind of family situations that have been shown -- in study after
study -- to be extremely damaging to their children.

Why on earth does this absurd situation continue? In my opinion, there
are two main reasons, although they are never spelled out. The first is
that the consideration that trumps all others when the interests of women
conflict with those of men (and those of children) is that women must have
as many options as possible. The second is that, habitually, men are held
to blame for family breakups, and it is regarded as appropriate to penalize
them for these breakups. However, the fact is that the vast majority of
divorces in the U.S. today are initiated by wives over the objections of
their husbands.



"Bobbi" wrote in message
...
A study of 522 teenage girls, for example, found that girls in
divorced families committed more delinquent acts (eg, drug abuse,
larceny, skipping school) than their counterparts in intact families.
A recent book on street-gangs reveals that most gang members in
America come from female-headed households. A study of British
communities found a direct statistical link between single parenthood
and virtually every major type of crime, including mugging, violence
against strangers, car theft and burglary.

A 1987 study of 72 adolescent murderers discovered that 75 percent of
them had divorced or never-married parents. And a 1987 study of 108
violent rapists, all repeat offenders, found that 60 percent came from
single-parent homes. Or consider a study which tracked every child
born on the Hawaiian island of Kauai in 1955 for 30 years. It found
that five out of six delinquents with an adult criminal record came
from families where a parent - almost always the father - was absent.
Bobbi
************************************************** ***
Old Saudi saying: "My father rode a camel. I drive a car.
My son flies a jet airplane. His son will ride a camel."
Peak Oil - coming soon to a neighborhood near you.
************************************************** ***

It is truly astonishing that, in the face of statistics like those
below, the policy in most Western countries is to make it as easy as
possible for mothers to establish fatherless families. One of the biggest
incentives that has been created for mothers to do this is the existence of
so-called "child support." In the U.S. this is tax-free income that mothers
qualify for by expelling their husbands from the family. (And, of course,
there are other incentives, such as the existence of community property laws
that give divorcing spouses half of the marital assets, regardless of whose
labors created those assets.)

The bottom line is that fathers are being forced to subsidize exactly
the kind of family situations that have been shown -- in study after
study -- to be extremely damaging to their children.

Why on earth does this absurd situation continue? In my opinion, there
are two main reasons, although they are never spelled out. The first is
that the consideration that trumps all others when the interests of women
conflict with those of men (and those of children) is that women must have
as many options as possible. The second is that, habitually, men are held
to blame for family breakups, and it is regarded as appropriate to penalize
them for these breakups. However, the fact is that the vast majority of
divorces in the U.S. today are initiated by wives over the objections of
their husbands.



"Bobbi" wrote in message
...
A study of 522 teenage girls, for example, found that girls in
divorced families committed more delinquent acts (eg, drug abuse,
larceny, skipping school) than their counterparts in intact families.
A recent book on street-gangs reveals that most gang members in
America come from female-headed households. A study of British
communities found a direct statistical link between single parenthood
and virtually every major type of crime, including mugging, violence
against strangers, car theft and burglary.

A 1987 study of 72 adolescent murderers discovered that 75 percent of
them had divorced or never-married parents. And a 1987 study of 108
violent rapists, all repeat offenders, found that 60 percent came from
single-parent homes. Or consider a study which tracked every child
born on the Hawaiian island of Kauai in 1955 for 30 years. It found
that five out of six delinquents with an adult criminal record came
from families where a parent - almost always the father - was absent.
Bobbi
************************************************** ***
Old Saudi saying: "My father rode a camel. I drive a car.
My son flies a jet airplane. His son will ride a camel."
Peak Oil - coming soon to a neighborhood near you.
************************************************** ***

"P.Fritz" wrote in message
...
And some more

"Bobbi" wrote in message
...
A study of 522 teenage girls, for example, found that girls in
divorced families committed more delinquent acts (eg, drug abuse,
larceny, skipping school) than their counterparts in intact families.
A recent book on street-gangs reveals that most gang members in
America come from female-headed households. A study of British
communities found a direct statistical link between single parenthood
and virtually every major type of crime, including mugging, violence
against strangers, car theft and burglary.

A 1987 study of 72 adolescent murderers discovered that 75 percent of
them had divorced or never-married parents. And a 1987 study of 108
violent rapists, all repeat offenders, found that 60 percent came from
single-parent homes. Or consider a study which tracked every child
born on the Hawaiian island of Kauai in 1955 for 30 years. It found
that five out of six delinquents with an adult criminal record came
from families where a parent - almost always the father - was absent.
Bobbi
************************************************** ***
Old Saudi saying: "My father rode a camel. I drive a car.
My son flies a jet airplane. His son will ride a camel."
Peak Oil - coming soon to a neighborhood near you.
************************************************** ***


This study, conducted in Arizona, showed what the wishes of each parent
was,
and what the resulting custody decision was:

Fathers Wishes.

Joint Custody: 74%
Paternal Sole Custody: 15%
Maternal Sole Custody: 11%

Mother's wishes.

Maternal Sole Custody: 70%
Joint Custody: 30%

For the conflicting families (Father wanted joint custody, mother wanted
sole custody).

Maternal Sole Custody awarded: 77%
Joint Custody awarded: 23%

(Source: Determining the Impact of Joint Custody on Divorcing Families,
Sanford Braver, associate professor at the Arizona State University)

"The decrees overwhelmingly favored the mother's custody wishes: 67% of
mothers obtained both the legal and residential custody arrangements they
desired compared with only 15%
of fathers; meanwhile, only 8% of mothers (vs 37% of fathers) found
neither
stipulation to correspond to their preference."

(Source: Gender Differences in Satisfaction with Divorce Decrees, Sheets &
Braver, 1993)
From the Maccoby and Mnookin Study

Anne Mitchell recently posted these next statistics for California:

From Dividing the Child: Social & Legal Dilemmas of Custody - Harvard
Press,
1992 - Eleanor Maccoby (Psych Dept. Stanford) and Robert Mnookin (Stanford
Law School)
Based on their survey of nearly 1000 divorcing couples in San Mateo and
Santa Clara counties:

PHYSICAL CUSTODY OUTCOME WHEN PARENTS' REQUESTS CONFLICT:

Mother's Request: Mother Mother Joint
Father's Request: Joint Father Father
-------------------------------------------------------
Who got Custody:

Mother 68.6% 46.2% 0.0%
Joint 25.8% 36.5% 42.9%
Father 2.4% 9.6% 42.9%
Split 3.2% 7.7% 14.2%


PHYSICAL CUSTODY OUTCOME WHEN PARENTS' REQUESTS DO NOT CONFLICT:

Mother's Request: Mother Joint Father
Father's Request: Mother Joint Father
-------------------------------------------------------
Who got Custody:

Mother 89.4% 30.7% 12.3%
Joint 6.5% 54.0% 6.1%
Father 2.8% 8.0% 75.5%
Split 1.3% 7.3% 6.1%

Comment: Note that even when BOTH the mother and the father requested sole
paternal custody, sole maternal custody was awarded in 12% of the cases.

Now combine those numbers with the following and we see where the problem
lies.

"37.9% of fathers receive no access/visitation" (pg. 6, col. 2, 6, lines 4
&
5) Child Support & Alimony: 1989 Series P-60, No.173,
Issued September 1991 Pages 6 & 7 of the 1989 Census - Current Population
Reports

"Between 25% - 33% of mothers denied visits" (pg. 451, col. 2, 2, lines
11 -
14) Frequency of Visitation by Divorced Fathers:
Differences in Reports by Fathers and Mothers - Sanford H. Braver, Ph.D.,
Sharlene A. Wolchik, Ph.D., Irwin M. Sandler, Ph.D., Bruce S. Fogas,
Ph.D., Daria Zvetina, M.Ed. American Journal of Orthopsychiatry

"40% of mothers reported that they had interfered with the non- custodial
father's visitation on at least one occasion, to punish their
ex-spouse" (pg. 449, Col. 2, 1, lines 3 - 6 citing Fullton, 1979)
Frequency
of Visitation by Divorced Fathers: Differences in
Reports by Fathers and Mothers - Sanford H. Braver, Ph.D., Sharlene A.
Wolchik, Ph.D., Irwin M. Sandler, Ph.D., Bruce S. Fogas, Ph.D., Daria
Zvetina, M.Ed., American Journal of Orthopsychiatry

Overall, approximately 50% of mothers "see no value in the father's
continued contact with his children" (pg. 125, 4, lines 1 and 2)
Surviving the Breakup - Joan Berlin Kelly and Judith S. Wallerstein

"Unilateral abuse of parental custodial power is more common in court
ordered sole custody situations." (pg. 4, col. 1, 1, lines 17 -
20) Child Custody and Parental Cooperation - Frank Williams, M.D., Dir.
Psychiatry - Cedar-Sinai - Presented to theAmerican Bar Association,
Family Law Section, August 1987 and January 1988

"Feelings of anger toward their former spouses hindered effective
involvement on the part of the fathers; angry custodial mothers would
sometimes sabotage father's efforts to visit their children" (pg. 442,
Col.
1, 1, lines 23 - 27) The Effect of the Post Divorce
Relationship on Paternal Involvement: A Longitudinal Analysis - Constance
R.
Ahrons, Ph.D., and Richard B. Miller, Ph.D., American Journal of
Orthopsychiatry, Vol. 63, No. 3, July 1993

"Mothers may prevent visits to retaliate against the fathers for problems
in
their marital or post marital relationship" (pg. 1015, Col. 2,
2, lines 5 - 8) Family Ties after Divorce: The Relationship Between
Visiting
and Paying Support - Judith A. Seltzer, Nora Shaeffer, Hong-wen
Charing, University of Wisconsin, Journal of Marriage & the Family, Vol.
51,
No. 4, November 1989.

"Our research indicates that most fathers and children who are separated
from each other face barriers to continued interaction" (pg. 675,
Col. 1, 1, Lines 2 - 5) Children's Contact with Absent Parents - Judith A.
Seltzer, University of Wisconsin - Madison and Suzanne M.
Bianchi, U.S. Bureau of the Census

"The former spouse [mother] was the greatest obstacle to having more
frequent contact with the children" (pg. 281, Col. 2, 1, lines 1
- 4) Increasing Our Understanding of Fathers Who Have Infrequent Contact
With Their Children - James R. Dudley, Professor, University North
Carolina, under a grant from Temple University, Family Relations, Vol. 4,
No. 3, July 1991

"Unfortunately, some angry women attempted to use the child's symptomatic
behaviors as proof that the visits were detrimental to the child's
welfare and should therefore be discontinued, distressing the unhappy
children even more" (pg. 126, 2, lines 1 - 5) Surviving the
Breakup, Joan Berlin Kelly and Judith S. Wallerstein, Basic Books

"The court's failure to enforce or expand visitation agreements were a
frequently mentioned complaint" (pg. 281, col. 2, 2, lines 14
- 16) Increasing Our Understanding of Fathers Who Have Infrequent Contact
With Their Children - James R. Dudley, Professor, University North
Carolina, under a grant from Temple University, Family Relations, Vol. 4,
No. 3, July 1991

"Fathers felt their bargaining power to be weaker than the mother's and
mentioned the repeated need for compromise and negotiation to
maintain regular involvement with the children." (pg. 60, 3, lines 13 -
15)
Visitation and the Noncustodial Father - Mary Ann P. Koch,
Carol R. Lowery, Journal of Divorce, Vol. 8, No. 2, Winter 1984

"Most men were dissatisfied with the frequency of visitation" (pg. 54, 4
lines 5) Visitation and the Noncustodial Father - Mary Ann P.
Koch, Carol R. Lowery, Journal of Divorce, Vol. 8, No. 2, Winter 1984

"70% of fathers felt they had too little time with their children." (pg
54,
4, lines 5 - 7) Visitation and the Noncustodial Father - Mary Ann
P. Koch, Carol R. Lowery, Journal of Divorce, Vol. 8, No. 2, Winter 1984

I wager a MILLION DOLLARS that if the gender identity of the parents were
not revealed to the kourts that the scales would quickly balance, if not
lean toward the fathers. Any takers?

"P.Fritz" wrote in message
...
And some more

"Bobbi" wrote in message
...
A study of 522 teenage girls, for example, found that girls in
divorced families committed more delinquent acts (eg, drug abuse,
larceny, skipping school) than their counterparts in intact families.
A recent book on street-gangs reveals that most gang members in
America come from female-headed households. A study of British
communities found a direct statistical link between single parenthood
and virtually every major type of crime, including mugging, violence
against strangers, car theft and burglary.

A 1987 study of 72 adolescent murderers discovered that 75 percent of
them had divorced or never-married parents. And a 1987 study of 108
violent rapists, all repeat offenders, found that 60 percent came from
single-parent homes. Or consider a study which tracked every child
born on the Hawaiian island of Kauai in 1955 for 30 years. It found
that five out of six delinquents with an adult criminal record came
from families where a parent - almost always the father - was absent.
Bobbi
************************************************** ***
Old Saudi saying: "My father rode a camel. I drive a car.
My son flies a jet airplane. His son will ride a camel."
Peak Oil - coming soon to a neighborhood near you.
************************************************** ***


This study, conducted in Arizona, showed what the wishes of each parent
was,
and what the resulting custody decision was:

Fathers Wishes.

Joint Custody: 74%
Paternal Sole Custody: 15%
Maternal Sole Custody: 11%

Mother's wishes.

Maternal Sole Custody: 70%
Joint Custody: 30%

For the conflicting families (Father wanted joint custody, mother wanted
sole custody).

Maternal Sole Custody awarded: 77%
Joint Custody awarded: 23%

(Source: Determining the Impact of Joint Custody on Divorcing Families,
Sanford Braver, associate professor at the Arizona State University)

"The decrees overwhelmingly favored the mother's custody wishes: 67% of
mothers obtained both the legal and residential custody arrangements they
desired compared with only 15%
of fathers; meanwhile, only 8% of mothers (vs 37% of fathers) found
neither
stipulation to correspond to their preference."

(Source: Gender Differences in Satisfaction with Divorce Decrees, Sheets &
Braver, 1993)
From the Maccoby and Mnookin Study

Anne Mitchell recently posted these next statistics for California:

From Dividing the Child: Social & Legal Dilemmas of Custody - Harvard
Press,
1992 - Eleanor Maccoby (Psych Dept. Stanford) and Robert Mnookin (Stanford
Law School)
Based on their survey of nearly 1000 divorcing couples in San Mateo and
Santa Clara counties:

PHYSICAL CUSTODY OUTCOME WHEN PARENTS' REQUESTS CONFLICT:

Mother's Request: Mother Mother Joint
Father's Request: Joint Father Father
-------------------------------------------------------
Who got Custody:

Mother 68.6% 46.2% 0.0%
Joint 25.8% 36.5% 42.9%
Father 2.4% 9.6% 42.9%
Split 3.2% 7.7% 14.2%


PHYSICAL CUSTODY OUTCOME WHEN PARENTS' REQUESTS DO NOT CONFLICT:

Mother's Request: Mother Joint Father
Father's Request: Mother Joint Father
-------------------------------------------------------
Who got Custody:

Mother 89.4% 30.7% 12.3%
Joint 6.5% 54.0% 6.1%
Father 2.8% 8.0% 75.5%
Split 1.3% 7.3% 6.1%

Comment: Note that even when BOTH the mother and the father requested sole
paternal custody, sole maternal custody was awarded in 12% of the cases.

Now combine those numbers with the following and we see where the problem
lies.

"37.9% of fathers receive no access/visitation" (pg. 6, col. 2, 6, lines 4
&
5) Child Support & Alimony: 1989 Series P-60, No.173,
Issued September 1991 Pages 6 & 7 of the 1989 Census - Current Population
Reports

"Between 25% - 33% of mothers denied visits" (pg. 451, col. 2, 2, lines
11 -
14) Frequency of Visitation by Divorced Fathers:
Differences in Reports by Fathers and Mothers - Sanford H. Braver, Ph.D.,
Sharlene A. Wolchik, Ph.D., Irwin M. Sandler, Ph.D., Bruce S. Fogas,
Ph.D., Daria Zvetina, M.Ed. American Journal of Orthopsychiatry

"40% of mothers reported that they had interfered with the non- custodial
father's visitation on at least one occasion, to punish their
ex-spouse" (pg. 449, Col. 2, 1, lines 3 - 6 citing Fullton, 1979)
Frequency
of Visitation by Divorced Fathers: Differences in
Reports by Fathers and Mothers - Sanford H. Braver, Ph.D., Sharlene A.
Wolchik, Ph.D., Irwin M. Sandler, Ph.D., Bruce S. Fogas, Ph.D., Daria
Zvetina, M.Ed., American Journal of Orthopsychiatry

Overall, approximately 50% of mothers "see no value in the father's
continued contact with his children" (pg. 125, 4, lines 1 and 2)
Surviving the Breakup - Joan Berlin Kelly and Judith S. Wallerstein

"Unilateral abuse of parental custodial power is more common in court
ordered sole custody situations." (pg. 4, col. 1, 1, lines 17 -
20) Child Custody and Parental Cooperation - Frank Williams, M.D., Dir.
Psychiatry - Cedar-Sinai - Presented to theAmerican Bar Association,
Family Law Section, August 1987 and January 1988

"Feelings of anger toward their former spouses hindered effective
involvement on the part of the fathers; angry custodial mothers would
sometimes sabotage father's efforts to visit their children" (pg. 442,
Col.
1, 1, lines 23 - 27) The Effect of the Post Divorce
Relationship on Paternal Involvement: A Longitudinal Analysis - Constance
R.
Ahrons, Ph.D., and Richard B. Miller, Ph.D., American Journal of
Orthopsychiatry, Vol. 63, No. 3, July 1993

"Mothers may prevent visits to retaliate against the fathers for problems
in
their marital or post marital relationship" (pg. 1015, Col. 2,
2, lines 5 - 8) Family Ties after Divorce: The Relationship Between
Visiting
and Paying Support - Judith A. Seltzer, Nora Shaeffer, Hong-wen
Charing, University of Wisconsin, Journal of Marriage & the Family, Vol.
51,
No. 4, November 1989.

"Our research indicates that most fathers and children who are separated
from each other face barriers to continued interaction" (pg. 675,
Col. 1, 1, Lines 2 - 5) Children's Contact with Absent Parents - Judith A.
Seltzer, University of Wisconsin - Madison and Suzanne M.
Bianchi, U.S. Bureau of the Census

"The former spouse [mother] was the greatest obstacle to having more
frequent contact with the children" (pg. 281, Col. 2, 1, lines 1
- 4) Increasing Our Understanding of Fathers Who Have Infrequent Contact
With Their Children - James R. Dudley, Professor, University North
Carolina, under a grant from Temple University, Family Relations, Vol. 4,
No. 3, July 1991

"Unfortunately, some angry women attempted to use the child's symptomatic
behaviors as proof that the visits were detrimental to the child's
welfare and should therefore be discontinued, distressing the unhappy
children even more" (pg. 126, 2, lines 1 - 5) Surviving the
Breakup, Joan Berlin Kelly and Judith S. Wallerstein, Basic Books

"The court's failure to enforce or expand visitation agreements were a
frequently mentioned complaint" (pg. 281, col. 2, 2, lines 14
- 16) Increasing Our Understanding of Fathers Who Have Infrequent Contact
With Their Children - James R. Dudley, Professor, University North
Carolina, under a grant from Temple University, Family Relations, Vol. 4,
No. 3, July 1991

"Fathers felt their bargaining power to be weaker than the mother's and
mentioned the repeated need for compromise and negotiation to
maintain regular involvement with the children." (pg. 60, 3, lines 13 -
15)
Visitation and the Noncustodial Father - Mary Ann P. Koch,
Carol R. Lowery, Journal of Divorce, Vol. 8, No. 2, Winter 1984

"Most men were dissatisfied with the frequency of visitation" (pg. 54, 4
lines 5) Visitation and the Noncustodial Father - Mary Ann P.
Koch, Carol R. Lowery, Journal of Divorce, Vol. 8, No. 2, Winter 1984

"70% of fathers felt they had too little time with their children." (pg
54,
4, lines 5 - 7) Visitation and the Noncustodial Father - Mary Ann
P. Koch, Carol R. Lowery, Journal of Divorce, Vol. 8, No. 2, Winter 1984

I wager a MILLION DOLLARS that if the gender identity of the parents were
not revealed to the kourts that the scales would quickly balance, if not
lean toward the fathers. Any takers?

"Chris" wrote in message
news:SiX_b.11805$aZ3.2527@fed1read04...

"P.Fritz" wrote in message
...
And some more

"Bobbi" wrote in message
...
A study of 522 teenage girls, for example, found that girls in
divorced families committed more delinquent acts (eg, drug abuse,
larceny, skipping school) than their counterparts in intact families.
A recent book on street-gangs reveals that most gang members in
America come from female-headed households. A study of British
communities found a direct statistical link between single parenthood
and virtually every major type of crime, including mugging, violence
against strangers, car theft and burglary.

A 1987 study of 72 adolescent murderers discovered that 75 percent of
them had divorced or never-married parents. And a 1987 study of 108
violent rapists, all repeat offenders, found that 60 percent came from
single-parent homes. Or consider a study which tracked every child
born on the Hawaiian island of Kauai in 1955 for 30 years. It found
that five out of six delinquents with an adult criminal record came
from families where a parent - almost always the father - was absent.
Bobbi
************************************************** ***
Old Saudi saying: "My father rode a camel. I drive a car.
My son flies a jet airplane. His son will ride a camel."
Peak Oil - coming soon to a neighborhood near you.
************************************************** ***


This study, conducted in Arizona, showed what the wishes of each parent
was,
and what the resulting custody decision was:

Fathers Wishes.

Joint Custody: 74%
Paternal Sole Custody: 15%
Maternal Sole Custody: 11%

Mother's wishes.

Maternal Sole Custody: 70%
Joint Custody: 30%

For the conflicting families (Father wanted joint custody, mother wanted
sole custody).

Maternal Sole Custody awarded: 77%
Joint Custody awarded: 23%

(Source: Determining the Impact of Joint Custody on Divorcing Families,
Sanford Braver, associate professor at the Arizona State University)

"The decrees overwhelmingly favored the mother's custody wishes: 67% of
mothers obtained both the legal and residential custody arrangements
they
desired compared with only 15%
of fathers; meanwhile, only 8% of mothers (vs 37% of fathers) found
neither
stipulation to correspond to their preference."

(Source: Gender Differences in Satisfaction with Divorce Decrees, Sheets
&
Braver, 1993)
From the Maccoby and Mnookin Study

Anne Mitchell recently posted these next statistics for California:

From Dividing the Child: Social & Legal Dilemmas of Custody - Harvard
Press,
1992 - Eleanor Maccoby (Psych Dept. Stanford) and Robert Mnookin
(Stanford
Law School)
Based on their survey of nearly 1000 divorcing couples in San Mateo and
Santa Clara counties:

PHYSICAL CUSTODY OUTCOME WHEN PARENTS' REQUESTS CONFLICT:

Mother's Request: Mother Mother Joint
Father's Request: Joint Father Father
-------------------------------------------------------
Who got Custody:

Mother 68.6% 46.2% 0.0%
Joint 25.8% 36.5% 42.9%
Father 2.4% 9.6% 42.9%
Split 3.2% 7.7% 14.2%


PHYSICAL CUSTODY OUTCOME WHEN PARENTS' REQUESTS DO NOT CONFLICT:

Mother's Request: Mother Joint Father
Father's Request: Mother Joint Father
-------------------------------------------------------
Who got Custody:

Mother 89.4% 30.7% 12.3%
Joint 6.5% 54.0% 6.1%
Father 2.8% 8.0% 75.5%
Split 1.3% 7.3% 6.1%

Comment: Note that even when BOTH the mother and the father requested
sole
paternal custody, sole maternal custody was awarded in 12% of the cases.

Now combine those numbers with the following and we see where the
problem
lies.

"37.9% of fathers receive no access/visitation" (pg. 6, col. 2, 6, lines
4
&
5) Child Support & Alimony: 1989 Series P-60, No.173,
Issued September 1991 Pages 6 & 7 of the 1989 Census - Current
Population
Reports

"Between 25% - 33% of mothers denied visits" (pg. 451, col. 2, 2, lines
11 -
14) Frequency of Visitation by Divorced Fathers:
Differences in Reports by Fathers and Mothers - Sanford H. Braver,
Ph.D.,
Sharlene A. Wolchik, Ph.D., Irwin M. Sandler, Ph.D., Bruce S. Fogas,
Ph.D., Daria Zvetina, M.Ed. American Journal of Orthopsychiatry

"40% of mothers reported that they had interfered with the non-
custodial
father's visitation on at least one occasion, to punish their
ex-spouse" (pg. 449, Col. 2, 1, lines 3 - 6 citing Fullton, 1979)
Frequency
of Visitation by Divorced Fathers: Differences in
Reports by Fathers and Mothers - Sanford H. Braver, Ph.D., Sharlene A.
Wolchik, Ph.D., Irwin M. Sandler, Ph.D., Bruce S. Fogas, Ph.D., Daria
Zvetina, M.Ed., American Journal of Orthopsychiatry

Overall, approximately 50% of mothers "see no value in the father's
continued contact with his children" (pg. 125, 4, lines 1 and 2)
Surviving the Breakup - Joan Berlin Kelly and Judith S. Wallerstein

"Unilateral abuse of parental custodial power is more common in court
ordered sole custody situations." (pg. 4, col. 1, 1, lines 17 -
20) Child Custody and Parental Cooperation - Frank Williams, M.D., Dir.
Psychiatry - Cedar-Sinai - Presented to theAmerican Bar Association,
Family Law Section, August 1987 and January 1988

"Feelings of anger toward their former spouses hindered effective
involvement on the part of the fathers; angry custodial mothers would
sometimes sabotage father's efforts to visit their children" (pg. 442,
Col.
1, 1, lines 23 - 27) The Effect of the Post Divorce
Relationship on Paternal Involvement: A Longitudinal Analysis -
Constance
R.
Ahrons, Ph.D., and Richard B. Miller, Ph.D., American Journal of
Orthopsychiatry, Vol. 63, No. 3, July 1993

"Mothers may prevent visits to retaliate against the fathers for
problems
in
their marital or post marital relationship" (pg. 1015, Col. 2,
2, lines 5 - 8) Family Ties after Divorce: The Relationship Between
Visiting
and Paying Support - Judith A. Seltzer, Nora Shaeffer, Hong-wen
Charing, University of Wisconsin, Journal of Marriage & the Family, Vol.
51,
No. 4, November 1989.

"Our research indicates that most fathers and children who are separated
from each other face barriers to continued interaction" (pg. 675,
Col. 1, 1, Lines 2 - 5) Children's Contact with Absent Parents - Judith
A.
Seltzer, University of Wisconsin - Madison and Suzanne M.
Bianchi, U.S. Bureau of the Census

"The former spouse [mother] was the greatest obstacle to having more
frequent contact with the children" (pg. 281, Col. 2, 1, lines 1
- 4) Increasing Our Understanding of Fathers Who Have Infrequent Contact
With Their Children - James R. Dudley, Professor, University North
Carolina, under a grant from Temple University, Family Relations, Vol.
4,
No. 3, July 1991

"Unfortunately, some angry women attempted to use the child's
symptomatic
behaviors as proof that the visits were detrimental to the child's
welfare and should therefore be discontinued, distressing the unhappy
children even more" (pg. 126, 2, lines 1 - 5) Surviving the
Breakup, Joan Berlin Kelly and Judith S. Wallerstein, Basic Books

"The court's failure to enforce or expand visitation agreements were a
frequently mentioned complaint" (pg. 281, col. 2, 2, lines 14
- 16) Increasing Our Understanding of Fathers Who Have Infrequent
Contact
With Their Children - James R. Dudley, Professor, University North
Carolina, under a grant from Temple University, Family Relations, Vol.
4,
No. 3, July 1991

"Fathers felt their bargaining power to be weaker than the mother's and
mentioned the repeated need for compromise and negotiation to
maintain regular involvement with the children." (pg. 60, 3, lines 13 -
15)
Visitation and the Noncustodial Father - Mary Ann P. Koch,
Carol R. Lowery, Journal of Divorce, Vol. 8, No. 2, Winter 1984

"Most men were dissatisfied with the frequency of visitation" (pg. 54, 4
lines 5) Visitation and the Noncustodial Father - Mary Ann P.
Koch, Carol R. Lowery, Journal of Divorce, Vol. 8, No. 2, Winter 1984

"70% of fathers felt they had too little time with their children." (pg
54,
4, lines 5 - 7) Visitation and the Noncustodial Father - Mary Ann
P. Koch, Carol R. Lowery, Journal of Divorce, Vol. 8, No. 2, Winter 1984

I wager a MILLION DOLLARS that if the gender identity of the parents were
not revealed to the kourts that the scales would quickly balance, if not
lean toward the fathers. Any takers?

I don't have a million dollars to wager. However, I just bet that,
if detailed statistics were to be published every six months of custody
decisions by gender, not just on a state-by-state basis, but also on a
judge-by-judge basis, the situation would change. The bias against fathers
would be highlighted, and there would at least be stronger pressure for
change.

However, at present I know of no systematic, comprehensive collection
and publication of data on custody rulings by gender. And, to be complete,
the information would have to include data about custody decisions
supposedly made by agreement between the parents, since most fathers know
very well what the outcome will be if they contest custody in court.
Custody fights are like bullfights -- there's not much doubt about which
participant is going to win, and which one will be stabbed to death.

And, speaking of animal analogies, who remembers the Georgia family
court judge who was asked several years ago why, in many years on the bench,
he had never once awarded custody to a father? "I ain't never seen a
situation where the calf followed the bull," he replied. The barnyard
principle for custody is alive and well in U.S. courts.

"Chris" wrote in message
news:SiX_b.11805$aZ3.2527@fed1read04...

"P.Fritz" wrote in message
...
And some more

"Bobbi" wrote in message
...
A study of 522 teenage girls, for example, found that girls in
divorced families committed more delinquent acts (eg, drug abuse,
larceny, skipping school) than their counterparts in intact families.
A recent book on street-gangs reveals that most gang members in
America come from female-headed households. A study of British
communities found a direct statistical link between single parenthood
and virtually every major type of crime, including mugging, violence
against strangers, car theft and burglary.

A 1987 study of 72 adolescent murderers discovered that 75 percent of
them had divorced or never-married parents. And a 1987 study of 108
violent rapists, all repeat offenders, found that 60 percent came from
single-parent homes. Or consider a study which tracked every child
born on the Hawaiian island of Kauai in 1955 for 30 years. It found
that five out of six delinquents with an adult criminal record came
from families where a parent - almost always the father - was absent.
Bobbi
************************************************** ***
Old Saudi saying: "My father rode a camel. I drive a car.
My son flies a jet airplane. His son will ride a camel."
Peak Oil - coming soon to a neighborhood near you.
************************************************** ***


This study, conducted in Arizona, showed what the wishes of each parent
was,
and what the resulting custody decision was:

Fathers Wishes.

Joint Custody: 74%
Paternal Sole Custody: 15%
Maternal Sole Custody: 11%

Mother's wishes.

Maternal Sole Custody: 70%
Joint Custody: 30%

For the conflicting families (Father wanted joint custody, mother wanted
sole custody).

Maternal Sole Custody awarded: 77%
Joint Custody awarded: 23%

(Source: Determining the Impact of Joint Custody on Divorcing Families,
Sanford Braver, associate professor at the Arizona State University)

"The decrees overwhelmingly favored the mother's custody wishes: 67% of
mothers obtained both the legal and residential custody arrangements
they
desired compared with only 15%
of fathers; meanwhile, only 8% of mothers (vs 37% of fathers) found
neither
stipulation to correspond to their preference."

(Source: Gender Differences in Satisfaction with Divorce Decrees, Sheets
&
Braver, 1993)
From the Maccoby and Mnookin Study

Anne Mitchell recently posted these next statistics for California:

From Dividing the Child: Social & Legal Dilemmas of Custody - Harvard
Press,
1992 - Eleanor Maccoby (Psych Dept. Stanford) and Robert Mnookin
(Stanford
Law School)
Based on their survey of nearly 1000 divorcing couples in San Mateo and
Santa Clara counties:

PHYSICAL CUSTODY OUTCOME WHEN PARENTS' REQUESTS CONFLICT:

Mother's Request: Mother Mother Joint
Father's Request: Joint Father Father
-------------------------------------------------------
Who got Custody:

Mother 68.6% 46.2% 0.0%
Joint 25.8% 36.5% 42.9%
Father 2.4% 9.6% 42.9%
Split 3.2% 7.7% 14.2%


PHYSICAL CUSTODY OUTCOME WHEN PARENTS' REQUESTS DO NOT CONFLICT:

Mother's Request: Mother Joint Father
Father's Request: Mother Joint Father
-------------------------------------------------------
Who got Custody:

Mother 89.4% 30.7% 12.3%
Joint 6.5% 54.0% 6.1%
Father 2.8% 8.0% 75.5%
Split 1.3% 7.3% 6.1%

Comment: Note that even when BOTH the mother and the father requested
sole
paternal custody, sole maternal custody was awarded in 12% of the cases.

Now combine those numbers with the following and we see where the
problem
lies.

"37.9% of fathers receive no access/visitation" (pg. 6, col. 2, 6, lines
4
&
5) Child Support & Alimony: 1989 Series P-60, No.173,
Issued September 1991 Pages 6 & 7 of the 1989 Census - Current
Population
Reports

"Between 25% - 33% of mothers denied visits" (pg. 451, col. 2, 2, lines
11 -
14) Frequency of Visitation by Divorced Fathers:
Differences in Reports by Fathers and Mothers - Sanford H. Braver,
Ph.D.,
Sharlene A. Wolchik, Ph.D., Irwin M. Sandler, Ph.D., Bruce S. Fogas,
Ph.D., Daria Zvetina, M.Ed. American Journal of Orthopsychiatry

"40% of mothers reported that they had interfered with the non-
custodial
father's visitation on at least one occasion, to punish their
ex-spouse" (pg. 449, Col. 2, 1, lines 3 - 6 citing Fullton, 1979)
Frequency
of Visitation by Divorced Fathers: Differences in
Reports by Fathers and Mothers - Sanford H. Braver, Ph.D., Sharlene A.
Wolchik, Ph.D., Irwin M. Sandler, Ph.D., Bruce S. Fogas, Ph.D., Daria
Zvetina, M.Ed., American Journal of Orthopsychiatry

Overall, approximately 50% of mothers "see no value in the father's
continued contact with his children" (pg. 125, 4, lines 1 and 2)
Surviving the Breakup - Joan Berlin Kelly and Judith S. Wallerstein

"Unilateral abuse of parental custodial power is more common in court
ordered sole custody situations." (pg. 4, col. 1, 1, lines 17 -
20) Child Custody and Parental Cooperation - Frank Williams, M.D., Dir.
Psychiatry - Cedar-Sinai - Presented to theAmerican Bar Association,
Family Law Section, August 1987 and January 1988

"Feelings of anger toward their former spouses hindered effective
involvement on the part of the fathers; angry custodial mothers would
sometimes sabotage father's efforts to visit their children" (pg. 442,
Col.
1, 1, lines 23 - 27) The Effect of the Post Divorce
Relationship on Paternal Involvement: A Longitudinal Analysis -
Constance
R.
Ahrons, Ph.D., and Richard B. Miller, Ph.D., American Journal of
Orthopsychiatry, Vol. 63, No. 3, July 1993

"Mothers may prevent visits to retaliate against the fathers for
problems
in
their marital or post marital relationship" (pg. 1015, Col. 2,
2, lines 5 - 8) Family Ties after Divorce: The Relationship Between
Visiting
and Paying Support - Judith A. Seltzer, Nora Shaeffer, Hong-wen
Charing, University of Wisconsin, Journal of Marriage & the Family, Vol.
51,
No. 4, November 1989.

"Our research indicates that most fathers and children who are separated
from each other face barriers to continued interaction" (pg. 675,
Col. 1, 1, Lines 2 - 5) Children's Contact with Absent Parents - Judith
A.
Seltzer, University of Wisconsin - Madison and Suzanne M.
Bianchi, U.S. Bureau of the Census

"The former spouse [mother] was the greatest obstacle to having more
frequent contact with the children" (pg. 281, Col. 2, 1, lines 1
- 4) Increasing Our Understanding of Fathers Who Have Infrequent Contact
With Their Children - James R. Dudley, Professor, University North
Carolina, under a grant from Temple University, Family Relations, Vol.
4,
No. 3, July 1991

"Unfortunately, some angry women attempted to use the child's
symptomatic
behaviors as proof that the visits were detrimental to the child's
welfare and should therefore be discontinued, distressing the unhappy
children even more" (pg. 126, 2, lines 1 - 5) Surviving the
Breakup, Joan Berlin Kelly and Judith S. Wallerstein, Basic Books

"The court's failure to enforce or expand visitation agreements were a
frequently mentioned complaint" (pg. 281, col. 2, 2, lines 14
- 16) Increasing Our Understanding of Fathers Who Have Infrequent
Contact
With Their Children - James R. Dudley, Professor, University North
Carolina, under a grant from Temple University, Family Relations, Vol.
4,
No. 3, July 1991

"Fathers felt their bargaining power to be weaker than the mother's and
mentioned the repeated need for compromise and negotiation to
maintain regular involvement with the children." (pg. 60, 3, lines 13 -
15)
Visitation and the Noncustodial Father - Mary Ann P. Koch,
Carol R. Lowery, Journal of Divorce, Vol. 8, No. 2, Winter 1984

"Most men were dissatisfied with the frequency of visitation" (pg. 54, 4
lines 5) Visitation and the Noncustodial Father - Mary Ann P.
Koch, Carol R. Lowery, Journal of Divorce, Vol. 8, No. 2, Winter 1984

"70% of fathers felt they had too little time with their children." (pg
54,
4, lines 5 - 7) Visitation and the Noncustodial Father - Mary Ann
P. Koch, Carol R. Lowery, Journal of Divorce, Vol. 8, No. 2, Winter 1984

I wager a MILLION DOLLARS that if the gender identity of the parents were
not revealed to the kourts that the scales would quickly balance, if not
lean toward the fathers. Any takers?

I don't have a million dollars to wager. However, I just bet that,
if detailed statistics were to be published every six months of custody
decisions by gender, not just on a state-by-state basis, but also on a
judge-by-judge basis, the situation would change. The bias against fathers
would be highlighted, and there would at least be stronger pressure for
change.

However, at present I know of no systematic, comprehensive collection
and publication of data on custody rulings by gender. And, to be complete,
the information would have to include data about custody decisions
supposedly made by agreement between the parents, since most fathers know
very well what the outcome will be if they contest custody in court.
Custody fights are like bullfights -- there's not much doubt about which
participant is going to win, and which one will be stabbed to death.

And, speaking of animal analogies, who remembers the Georgia family
court judge who was asked several years ago why, in many years on the bench,
he had never once awarded custody to a father? "I ain't never seen a
situation where the calf followed the bull," he replied. The barnyard
principle for custody is alive and well in U.S. courts.

"Kenneth S." wrote in message
...

"Chris" wrote in message
news:SiX_b.11805$aZ3.2527@fed1read04...

"P.Fritz" wrote in message
...
And some more

"Bobbi" wrote in message
...
A study of 522 teenage girls, for example, found that girls in
divorced families committed more delinquent acts (eg, drug abuse,
larceny, skipping school) than their counterparts in intact
families.
A recent book on street-gangs reveals that most gang members in
America come from female-headed households. A study of British
communities found a direct statistical link between single
parenthood
and virtually every major type of crime, including mugging, violence
against strangers, car theft and burglary.

A 1987 study of 72 adolescent murderers discovered that 75 percent
of
them had divorced or never-married parents. And a 1987 study of 108
violent rapists, all repeat offenders, found that 60 percent came
from
single-parent homes. Or consider a study which tracked every child
born on the Hawaiian island of Kauai in 1955 for 30 years. It found
that five out of six delinquents with an adult criminal record came
from families where a parent - almost always the father - was
absent.
Bobbi
************************************************** ***
Old Saudi saying: "My father rode a camel. I drive a car.
My son flies a jet airplane. His son will ride a camel."
Peak Oil - coming soon to a neighborhood near you.
************************************************** ***


This study, conducted in Arizona, showed what the wishes of each
parent
was,
and what the resulting custody decision was:

Fathers Wishes.

Joint Custody: 74%
Paternal Sole Custody: 15%
Maternal Sole Custody: 11%

Mother's wishes.

Maternal Sole Custody: 70%
Joint Custody: 30%

For the conflicting families (Father wanted joint custody, mother
wanted
sole custody).

Maternal Sole Custody awarded: 77%
Joint Custody awarded: 23%

(Source: Determining the Impact of Joint Custody on Divorcing
Families,
Sanford Braver, associate professor at the Arizona State University)

"The decrees overwhelmingly favored the mother's custody wishes: 67%
of
mothers obtained both the legal and residential custody arrangements
they
desired compared with only 15%
of fathers; meanwhile, only 8% of mothers (vs 37% of fathers) found
neither
stipulation to correspond to their preference."

(Source: Gender Differences in Satisfaction with Divorce Decrees,
Sheets
&
Braver, 1993)
From the Maccoby and Mnookin Study

Anne Mitchell recently posted these next statistics for California:

From Dividing the Child: Social & Legal Dilemmas of Custody - Harvard
Press,
1992 - Eleanor Maccoby (Psych Dept. Stanford) and Robert Mnookin
(Stanford
Law School)
Based on their survey of nearly 1000 divorcing couples in San Mateo
and
Santa Clara counties:

PHYSICAL CUSTODY OUTCOME WHEN PARENTS' REQUESTS CONFLICT:

Mother's Request: Mother Mother Joint
Father's Request: Joint Father Father
-------------------------------------------------------
Who got Custody:

Mother 68.6% 46.2% 0.0%
Joint 25.8% 36.5% 42.9%
Father 2.4% 9.6% 42.9%
Split 3.2% 7.7% 14.2%


PHYSICAL CUSTODY OUTCOME WHEN PARENTS' REQUESTS DO NOT CONFLICT:

Mother's Request: Mother Joint Father
Father's Request: Mother Joint Father
-------------------------------------------------------
Who got Custody:

Mother 89.4% 30.7% 12.3%
Joint 6.5% 54.0% 6.1%
Father 2.8% 8.0% 75.5%
Split 1.3% 7.3% 6.1%

Comment: Note that even when BOTH the mother and the father requested
sole
paternal custody, sole maternal custody was awarded in 12% of the
cases.

Now combine those numbers with the following and we see where the
problem
lies.

"37.9% of fathers receive no access/visitation" (pg. 6, col. 2, 6,
lines
4
&
5) Child Support & Alimony: 1989 Series P-60, No.173,
Issued September 1991 Pages 6 & 7 of the 1989 Census - Current
Population
Reports

"Between 25% - 33% of mothers denied visits" (pg. 451, col. 2, 2,
lines
11 -
14) Frequency of Visitation by Divorced Fathers:
Differences in Reports by Fathers and Mothers - Sanford H. Braver,
Ph.D.,
Sharlene A. Wolchik, Ph.D., Irwin M. Sandler, Ph.D., Bruce S. Fogas,
Ph.D., Daria Zvetina, M.Ed. American Journal of Orthopsychiatry

"40% of mothers reported that they had interfered with the non-
custodial
father's visitation on at least one occasion, to punish their
ex-spouse" (pg. 449, Col. 2, 1, lines 3 - 6 citing Fullton, 1979)
Frequency
of Visitation by Divorced Fathers: Differences in
Reports by Fathers and Mothers - Sanford H. Braver, Ph.D., Sharlene A.
Wolchik, Ph.D., Irwin M. Sandler, Ph.D., Bruce S. Fogas, Ph.D., Daria
Zvetina, M.Ed., American Journal of Orthopsychiatry

Overall, approximately 50% of mothers "see no value in the father's
continued contact with his children" (pg. 125, 4, lines 1 and 2)
Surviving the Breakup - Joan Berlin Kelly and Judith S. Wallerstein

"Unilateral abuse of parental custodial power is more common in court
ordered sole custody situations." (pg. 4, col. 1, 1, lines 17 -
20) Child Custody and Parental Cooperation - Frank Williams, M.D.,
Dir.
Psychiatry - Cedar-Sinai - Presented to theAmerican Bar Association,
Family Law Section, August 1987 and January 1988

"Feelings of anger toward their former spouses hindered effective
involvement on the part of the fathers; angry custodial mothers would
sometimes sabotage father's efforts to visit their children" (pg. 442,
Col.
1, 1, lines 23 - 27) The Effect of the Post Divorce
Relationship on Paternal Involvement: A Longitudinal Analysis -
Constance
R.
Ahrons, Ph.D., and Richard B. Miller, Ph.D., American Journal of
Orthopsychiatry, Vol. 63, No. 3, July 1993

"Mothers may prevent visits to retaliate against the fathers for
problems
in
their marital or post marital relationship" (pg. 1015, Col. 2,
2, lines 5 - 8) Family Ties after Divorce: The Relationship Between
Visiting
and Paying Support - Judith A. Seltzer, Nora Shaeffer, Hong-wen
Charing, University of Wisconsin, Journal of Marriage & the Family,
Vol.
51,
No. 4, November 1989.

"Our research indicates that most fathers and children who are
separated
from each other face barriers to continued interaction" (pg. 675,
Col. 1, 1, Lines 2 - 5) Children's Contact with Absent Parents -
Judith
A.
Seltzer, University of Wisconsin - Madison and Suzanne M.
Bianchi, U.S. Bureau of the Census

"The former spouse [mother] was the greatest obstacle to having more
frequent contact with the children" (pg. 281, Col. 2, 1, lines 1
- 4) Increasing Our Understanding of Fathers Who Have Infrequent
Contact
With Their Children - James R. Dudley, Professor, University North
Carolina, under a grant from Temple University, Family Relations, Vol.
4,
No. 3, July 1991

"Unfortunately, some angry women attempted to use the child's
symptomatic
behaviors as proof that the visits were detrimental to the child's
welfare and should therefore be discontinued, distressing the unhappy
children even more" (pg. 126, 2, lines 1 - 5) Surviving the
Breakup, Joan Berlin Kelly and Judith S. Wallerstein, Basic Books

"The court's failure to enforce or expand visitation agreements were a
frequently mentioned complaint" (pg. 281, col. 2, 2, lines 14
- 16) Increasing Our Understanding of Fathers Who Have Infrequent
Contact
With Their Children - James R. Dudley, Professor, University North
Carolina, under a grant from Temple University, Family Relations, Vol.
4,
No. 3, July 1991

"Fathers felt their bargaining power to be weaker than the mother's
and
mentioned the repeated need for compromise and negotiation to
maintain regular involvement with the children." (pg. 60, 3, lines
13 -
15)
Visitation and the Noncustodial Father - Mary Ann P. Koch,
Carol R. Lowery, Journal of Divorce, Vol. 8, No. 2, Winter 1984

"Most men were dissatisfied with the frequency of visitation" (pg. 54,
4
lines 5) Visitation and the Noncustodial Father - Mary Ann P.
Koch, Carol R. Lowery, Journal of Divorce, Vol. 8, No. 2, Winter 1984

"70% of fathers felt they had too little time with their children."
(pg
54,
4, lines 5 - 7) Visitation and the Noncustodial Father - Mary Ann
P. Koch, Carol R. Lowery, Journal of Divorce, Vol. 8, No. 2, Winter
1984

I wager a MILLION DOLLARS that if the gender identity of the parents
were
not revealed to the kourts that the scales would quickly balance, if not
lean toward the fathers. Any takers?

I don't have a million dollars to wager. However, I just bet
that,
if detailed statistics were to be published every six months of custody
decisions by gender, not just on a state-by-state basis, but also on a
judge-by-judge basis, the situation would change. The bias against
fathers
would be highlighted, and there would at least be stronger pressure for
change.

Absolutely!


However, at present I know of no systematic, comprehensive collection
and publication of data on custody rulings by gender. And, to be
complete,
the information would have to include data about custody decisions
supposedly made by agreement between the parents, since most fathers know
very well what the outcome will be if they contest custody in court.
Custody fights are like bullfights -- there's not much doubt about which
participant is going to win, and which one will be stabbed to death.

I just had a debate with someone in another newsgroup on EXACTLY this topic,
and they used the same lame reasoning that most fathers already agree to let
the mother have custody; thus she is not really demanding and getting her
order filled. Uhuh. This is nothing more than legal psychological
conditioning of fathers as they already know the likely outcome if they do
anything OTHER than be seen and not heard.


And, speaking of animal analogies, who remembers the Georgia family
court judge who was asked several years ago why, in many years on the
bench,
he had never once awarded custody to a father? "I ain't never seen a
situation where the calf followed the bull," he replied. The barnyard
principle for custody is alive and well in U.S. courts.

I heard about it! This clown has reduced men to "bulls"! I wonder if he
places himself in the same category?

(sorry for the delay in posting)