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Forensic psychologists are important advisors to the lawyers, mediators, and judges in child custody disputes. Unfortunately, messy child-custody disputes are an all-too-common occurrence when parents divorce. In some especially difficult cases, one parent may make an allegation against the other, and sometimes these allegations are made primarily to gain the support of the courts.
As impartial evaluators, forensic psychologists provide psychological assessments with a focus on parenting. The psychologist informs the fact-finder (usually the judge). Because parenting evaluations are supposed to be impartial by nature, they cannot involve themselves directly in the child-custody hearings. In other words, the forensic psychologist cannot approach the evaluation with any investment in the outcome of the case.
In the case of child abuse and/or neglect, the state must often intervene to provide a safe environment for the child until they can either be safely reunited with their parents or they are placed in a safe living environment. In these cases, forensic psychologists can offer thorough evaluations to help identify risk factors for child mistreatment, as well as ways to ameliorate risk.
Parenting evaluations consist of four major components:
1. Interview: Whenever possible, the psychologist must obtain personal history from the person being evaluated.
2. Record review (or review of “discovery”): The psychologist can receive records from a number of parties to the case and can use prior findings to help formulate a case.
3. Collateral consultation: Is the parent involved with a counselor or a parenting agency? If so, it is usually helpful to conduct a collateral interview with that service provider to ascertain the parent’s progress in treatment and what further treatments might be necessary.
4. Psychological testing: Testing is used to help determine if there are underlying risk factors (such as mental illness or low IQ) that might be contributing to the risk to the child.
In all evaluations, the “best interest” of the child is the chief criterion for the judge. A best interest determination can be strengthened with a solid psychological evaluation of a parent.
References
Costanzo, M., & Krauss, D. (2012). Forensic and legal psychology: Psychological science applied to law. New York, NY: Worth.
3
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4 Sh
o
rt Paper
:
The Hi
s
tory
of
Child Custody Arrangemen
I just want to take a moment to give you a little group feedback on your first short paper
s
that
you can keep
in
mind while you
are
working on your next one
.
In general, you did pretty well on these papers. It was evident to me that most of you took
the
time to read through the short paper rubric
and
my announcements relating to the paper prior to tackling it! I appreciate that so much! Here are some suggestions and reminders to make note of as we move along….
Please make sure to CAREFULLY REVIEW the individual feedback that I provided to you about your Module
1
Short Paper. This includes both the information that I provided on your grading sheet/rubric AND the notes and comments that I placed in green within the margins of your actual paper. I will admit that makes me nuts when students make repeated silly mistakes because they didn’t review specific feedback from prior assignments and make appropriate adjustments! I provide a lot of feedback, so please use it!
Please make sure to use APA format for your papers. This is particularly important when it comes to your in-text
citation
s and references. I know that some of you are more familiar with APA format than others, and I expect some challenges here. If this applies to you, I would encourage you to review the announcements and
resources
that have been made available to you relating to the use of APA format. Just so you know, even though I have used APA formatting for almost 3 decades now, I still manage to mess my formatting up from time to time. I don’t expect perfection, just a really good try with all o
f the
major components included.
Please make sure that you read the paper prompts (i.e., the questions that you need to answer for the paper
)
carefully and that you respond to ALL of the questions. It is easy to get so involved with one part of a paper that you completely space on some of the other required parts! It will also help to go back and read through the prompts one more time AFTER you have completed the paper (or at least think you have) just to make sure you’re not skipping something!
PROOFREAD your paper prior to submission! This can only boost your score! Believe me, I can tell which students do this and which students don’t. The ones that don’t often have a bunch of silly mistakes in them that are completely preventable.
Cite your sources! Unless you are providing a completely novel, original idea, you need to tell me where you got it, even if it is only from our textbook or from the other course materials like the example evaluations. You should have bothe in-text citations and a reference list in your
ts I would like to emphasize:
First of all, it is important for you to remember that you MUST acknowledge the work of other authors if you used it to develop your arguments (whether in an essay or a discussion post) either in a direct manner or indirect manner. To fail to do so implies that all of the ideas within a paper are entirely your own, which is pretty unlikely in an academic class. Don’t get me wrong – I WANT you to use other authors’ ideas! As a matter of fact, the point of these modules is to encourage you to integrate information from the assigned course materials and your own
research
(i.e., the work of other authors’) into your own work. It shows that you are using your new learning to think through and respond to the required questions. However, I don’t want you to do this without giving credit to the authors and sources that you used to develop your responses – to do so would be academically dishonest and, in a worst-case scenario, could even constitute plagiarism. In MOST of your writings, you should be referring to some other author’s work within the body of your writing, whether you refer to the authors of our textbook, the ancillary reports, case materials, and videos that are assigned as part of our course, or something else that you found on your own.
Citing sources is mandatory in a number of circumstances. These include the following:
When you use direct quotes you must cite your sources. If you use the exact words of another author, you must put the words in quotes and include an in-text citation.
When you paraphrase or rewrite what another author has said by putting it into your own words, you must still cite that source.
When you summarize another author’s arguments or data, you must cite that source.
When you are in doubt about the need to cite your source, cite your source!
There are also a limited number of situations where you do not need to cite your source. For example, you don’t necessarily need to cite your sources include when you are writing a personal essay about your own life, an opinion piece where you aren’t comparing your own ideas to some other person’s, or when you are stating something that is such common knowledge that is so frequently reported and easily verified that you can reasonably expect your audience to know it already (e.g., “The American Declaration of Independence occurred in 1776”).
We are using the APA style of bibliography in this class. In the general sense, a bibliography is a list of all sources that an author used during the process
of research
ing and developing his/her work (e.g., essay, research paper, discussion post, etc.). The primary purpose of a bibliography is to acknowledge the work of other authors or scholars. There are a number of ways to develop a bibliography and each has it’s own rules and
requirements
. For example, when you see the words “Works Cited” before a list of resources, the author is using the MLA style of bibliography that was developed by the Modern Languages Association (MLA). Another style of bibliography is the APA
style, and
this is the one that you are required to use in this class. The reason we are using this style is because it was developed by the American Psycho
logical
Association (APA) and is the predominant format used in most published scholarly research by individuals within the
many
sub-disciplines of psychology. APA format is somewhat different than MLA or the other writing styles. For example, in APA style, the list of
resources
is referred to as a “reference list” and is found at the end of the writing under the centered heading of “References”. So, when I see a reference list headed with “Works Cited” instead of “References”, I know that the student is either unfamiliar with APA style or is confused because they have also learned to use a different style of writing in the past (i.e., MLA, Chicago/Turabian, etc.). None of these are really “right” or “wrong”
, but
we are using the one developed and endorsed by those in the field of psychology.
When using APA style, citing your sources involves including in-text citations within the body of your writing. In-text citations show specifically WHERE in your paper you used information from other authors. They are located in parentheses within the actual paragraphs of your writing and generally include the author’s last name and the publication date of the resource that the writer is citing or awarding credit to. For example, if the writer was citing something that I wrote or said in
2
0
18, the in-text citation would likely look like this: (Hammond, 2018). When you are using direct quotes (i.e., the exact words of another author), you must also put the words in quotation marks and include the page or paragraph number where you found the quote. For example, if you were going to quote something the authors of our textbook said on page 16, your in-text citation would look like this: (Costanzo & Krauss, 20
15
, p. 16).
APA style also requires that you include corresponding references for EACH in-text citation in your writing. The purpose of references are to provide to the reader the additional specific information he/she would need to if he/she would actually like to locate the work you “referred to” by including in-text citations. These references are listed at the end of your submission, in alphabetical order, under the centered heading of “References”. The individual references might look slightly different depending upon the specific type of media that you are citing (i.e., a youtube video, a magazine article, a psychological report, a book, etc.), but they generally include the author(s) name, date of publication, full title of the work, and place where that source was published whether it be a professional journal, publishing company, or an internet website. Hence, if you cited some idea, concept, or quote from our textbook, the corresponding reference in the reference list would look like this: Costanzo, M., & Krauss, D. (2015). Forensic and legal psychology: Psychological science applied to law (2nd ed.). New York, NY: Worth Publishers.
SNHU has provided a number of resources to provide you with more specific direction on when and how to cite your sources, including specific information about how to use APA style to do so. Perhaps the most useful of these are the Online
Writing
Center and Shapiro Library. The Online Writing center is a free resource where students can schedule real-time online appointments with writing tutors, access video resources, and even download sample papers written in APA style. The Shapiro Library houses a number of citation guides with specific information on using various styles, including APA style. Both of these resources are accessible by clicking on “Online Student Services” on the top of BrightSpace home page and then the sub-area of “Academic Support”.
Finally, I would like to close by providing a list of the most common errors that students make regarding source citation. These are the things that will cause you to lose points on the Writing areas of the scoring rubrics.
Common Mistake #1: Students neglect to cite their sources when it would be appropriate to do so. When this happens, it is often the case that the student has not fully reviewed the requirements for this class, the requirements for the particular task, and/or the scoring rubrics. Other times, student’s think that, since they did not include any direct quotes, they don’t need to cite the work of others. Paraphrasing the work of other authors and putting into your own words still requires source citation!
Common Mistake #2: Students cite their sources, but not in the required APA style. When this happens, it is usually because the student doesn’t recognize that there is a difference between source citation using APA style and citation using other types of bibliography.
Common Mistake #3: Students include references without corresponding in-text citations or (less commonly) in-text citations without corresponding references. APA style requires you to include both. Remember – citations and references work together. You should not have one without the other.
Common Mistake #4: Students cite sources by simply by posting a list of internet addresses for the resources they used in their reference lists. While it is important to provide the web address when you cite information from the web, you also need to include corresponding in-text citations and all of the other required components of the references for those resources.
Common Mistake #5: Students neglect to include page, paragraph, or other relative information in their in-text citations when they are including directly quoted material. If you are using another author’s exact words, put them in quotes and include the exact location where you found them in your in-text citation. For a book or journal article, that would likely be a page number, for something on the internet, it might be a paragraph number, and for a video it might be the time location on the video where the material was quoted.
Common Mistake #4: Students don’t provide date of publication in their in-text citations and references. This usually happens when students are citing material from the internet and cannot locate the date that it was published. If you can’t find it, use “n.d.” in place of the actual date. This stands for “no date”.
Common Mistake #5: Incorrect placement of ending period when an in-text citation is involved. A fair number of students put a period after the sentence containing the cited material and before the actual citation. It should not be there. If I were to put a source citation at the end of this sentence, here is how it should look (Hammond, 2018). Notice there is no period after the word “look”.
Common Mistake #6: The in-text citation and reference do not adequately correspond. If the author includes an in-text citation, the reader should be able to easily find the corresponding reference within the reference list. The author information should match. For example, if the in-text citation reads (Hammond, 2018), the reference should START with Hammond and not some other information about the resource.
module: contains 0 sub-modules
6
In
complete
activities
Module Three
Child Custody Disputes
Module Three explains the important role psychologists play in child custody and child protection decisions. This module also offers an in-
depth
look at a child abuse evaluation, with an emphasis on critique of the self-report measure as a tool of forensic assessment.
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Show data table for This chart displays the number of completed topics versus the total number of topics within module Module Three..
List of Topics and Sub-Modules for Module Three
Module Three: Child Custody Disputes
Web Page
Task: View this topic
Read this information to get started on your module.
Module Overview
Web Page
Task: View this topic
Read the module overview.
3-1 Discussion: Analyzing Different Child Abuse Evaluation Methods
Discussion Topic
Task: Reply to this topic
Starts Jan 20, 2018 11:59 PM
You have three points of
analysis
of one abuse case: the abuser’s self-report, the forensic psychologist’s evaluation, and a video of an actual instance of abuse.
In a post to the discussion board, answer these questions:
After reading the documents, what were your assumptions about the case and the father?
How did those assumptions change after watching the video?
Considering all the
evidence
you’ve watched and read, what
conclusions
can you
draw
about the usefulness of self-reporting in parental evaluations?
When you respond to classmates’ posts, discuss how your analysis of the case differed from your classmates and why (including if you drew different conclusions from the same information).
3-2 Reading: Parent Sentence Completion and Formal Psychological Review
Web Page
Task: View this topic
Read the Parent Sentence Completion Self-Report and the Sample Child Abuse Evaluation in Resources.
As you read these, try to use the information provided to paint a picture of the abusive parent, both as he sees himself and as he is in reality. Consider how his answers on the self-report match up to the forensic psychologist’s evaluation and what the discrepancy may mean.
NOTE: There is no deliverable for this activity; this is for your exploration and reflection on the module
concepts
ONLY.
This is a non-graded activity.
3-3 Viewing: Child Abuse Video
Web Page
Task: View this topic
You are about to watch a video (the video itself has been altered in order to keep identities confidential) where actual child abuse takes place. It is exceedingly difficult to watch and should not be viewed where any children might see or hear it. You can view the video here (cc).
The video you will watch shows the subject of the Parent Sentence Completion Self-Report and the Sample Child Abuse Evaluation abusing a child.
You have read the father’s self-report as well as the forensic psychologist’s evaluation. Keep those in mind as you watch this video and compare the actual abuse scene to what expectations and assumptions you had about the subject after reading the documents.
NOTE: There is no deliverable for this activity; this is for your exploration and reflection on the module con
cepts
ONLY.
3-4 Short Paper: The History of Child Custody Arrangements
Assignment
Task: Submit to complete this assignment
Research
the history of child custody arrangements in the United States. Make sure you include the following:
An overview of how child custody arrangements have evolved over the years
A discussion of the cultural changes that have affected the evolution of child custody in the United States, making sure to explain how specific societal changes influenced legal custodial arrangements
A summary of the current trends in child custody arrangements in the United States
For additional details, please refer to the Short Paper Case Study Rubric document.
Short Paper/Case Study Rubric
(Undergraduate)
Guidelines for Submission:
Short papers should use double spacing, 12 point Times New Roman font, and one inch margins. Sources should be cited according to a discipline appropriate citation method. Page length requirements
:
1—–2 pages
.
Critical
Elements
Exemplary
(100
%)
Proficient
(85
%)
Needs Improvement
(55
%
)
Not Evident
(0%)
Value
Main Elements
Includes all of the
main
elements and requirements
and cites
multiple
examples to
illustrate each element
Includes most of the main
elements and requirements
and cites
many
examples to
illustrate each element
Includes some of the
main
elements and requirements
Does not
include
any of
the
main elements and
requirements
25
Inquiry
and
Analysis
Provides
in
–
depth analysis
that
demonstrate
s
complete
understanding of
multiple
concepts
Provides
in
–
depth analysis that
demonstrate
s
complete
understanding of some
concepts
Provides
in
–
depth analysis that
demonstrate
s
complete
understanding of
minimal
concepts
Does not
provide
in
–
depth
analysis
2
0
Integration
and
Application
All
o
f the
course con
cepts
are
correctly applied
Most
of the
course concept
s
are
correctly applied
Some of the
course concept
s
are
correctly applied
Does not
correctly apply
any of
the
course concepts
1
0
Critical
Thinking
Draw
s insightful conclusions
that are thoroughly defended
with evidence
and examples
Draws informed conclusions
that are justified
with evidence
Draw
s logical conclusions
, but
does not defend with
evidence
Does not
draw
logical
conclusions
2
0
Research
Incorporates
many scholarly
resources
effectively
that
reflect depth
and breadth
of
research
Incorporates some scholarly
resources
effectively
that
reflect depth
and breadth
of
research
Incorporates
very few scholarly
resources that reflect depth
and breadth
of research
Does not incorporate scholarly
resources that reflect depth
and breadth
of research
15
Writing
(Mechanics/Citations)
No errors related to
organization,
g
rammar and
style, and
citation
s
Minor errors related to
organization, g
rammar and
style, and citations
Some errors related to
organization, grammar and
style, and citations
Major errors related to
organization, grammar and
style, and citations
VIDEO: 3-3 Viewing: Child Abuse Video
Web Page
https://youtu.be/ie8UJ21L3_w
3-2 Reading: Parent Sentence Completion and Formal Psychological Review
THE SPURWINK CHILD ABUSE PROGRAM
17 BISHOP STREET
PORTLAND, MAINE 04103
Phone: 207-879-6160 or 800-260-6160
Fax: 207-871-5668
Psychological Report
Name: Joey Esmond
Date of Birth: January 15, 1973
Record No: 0123456
Evaluation Dates: February 04, 2008; March 11, 2008
Report Date: May 12, 2008
Evaluation Methods: Wide Range Achievement Test, third edition, reading subtest (WRAT3);
Kaufman Brief Intelligence Test, second edition (K-BIT2); Minnesota Multiphasic Personality
Inventory (MMPI-2); Millon Clinical Multiaxial Inventory (MCMI-III); Substance Abuse Subtle
Screening Inventory (SASSI-3); Child Abuse Potential Inventory (CAP-I); Parenting Stress
Index (PSI); client interview; Parenting Sentence Completion Series; record review; parent/child
interaction observation session
Examiner: William M. Barter, Ph.D., Program Psychologist
Background: Mr. Esmond was referred to Spurwink for an evaluation of his parenting relative
to the placement of his infant son, Garvey; his stepson, Matty; and his three older boys, Caleb,
Danny, and Kris. At the time of referral from DHHS, a DVD was provided by the Department
showing Mr. Esmond being physically, verbally, and emotionally abusive to his wife’s son,
Matty Mondor. There have been ongoing concerns about Mr. Esmond’s inappropriate and
antisocial behavior and his overall ability to be a safe parent.
Asked for his view of the referral, Mr. Esmond stated that he was being referred for an
evaluation because he and his wife did not understand how to deal with his stepson, Matty. He
stated that he wants to find out what his parenting skills are because the State of Maine disagrees
with him about parenting. He then stated that everybody learns in life. He said that since foster
placement Matty has been 100% more well-behaved, articulate, and has few fits of yelling. He
said that maltreatment concerns were based on how he and his wife were dealing with Matty’s
behaviors and the way he was acting. He then stated that Matty has been diagnosed with
Asperger’s Disorder, Bipolar Disorder, and Oppositional Defiant Disorder. He stated that it was
hard to know how to discipline him. He stated that he is currently living with his wife in an
apartment in Sanford where no children are currently living. He stated that Matty is in a foster
home, as is his infant son. He stated that they have supervised visits and he reiterated that
Matty’s behaviors have changed a great deal.
Evaluation Objectives: The current evaluation is intended a) to assess Mr. Esmond in terms of
his current psychological and emotional functioning, b) to assess his relative strengths and
weaknesses functioning as a parent, c) to assess for the presence of parental psychological,
Joey Esmond
Psychological Evaluation
Page 2 of 9
social, emotional or behavioral factors that might place children at risk of maltreatment or
neglect while in his care, and d) to assess his capacity to function as a predictable, empathic,
emotionally available attachment figure to his children.
Informed Consent: Informed consent for services at Spurwink was obtained from Mr. Esmond
to proceed with the evaluation. He affirmed understanding that the purpose of the evaluation
was to assess current psychological and emotional functioning as well as current parenting
competencies and risk factors for child abuse. He affirmed that he understood the non-
confidential nature of the evaluation and the fact that a copy of the final report will be forwarded
to the Maine Department of Health and Human Services. He further affirmed understanding that
the program staff might be called upon to testify on the content of the evaluation in court. He
affirmed understanding the risks and benefits of undergoing such an evaluation. Mr. Esmond was
afforded the opportunity to ask questions about the evaluation process at any step along the way.
Record Review: As part of the evaluation, records were provided by DHHS. Among the
records were police logs noting a couple of instances in which Mr. Esmond was involved in
altercations, including an assault on his wife and an assault on her child, Matty. The records
indicate Mr. Esmond’ inappropriate behavior in dealing with police officers and with family
issues.
In the DVD, Mr. Esmond is witnessed entering his stepson’s bedroom and threatening him with
hot sauce, later on bringing hot sauce into the room and threatening him with it. He is also
witnessed grabbing Matty by the sides of the face, slapping him, and speaking to him in a
threatening and sadistic voice. He was also witnessed using foul and abusive language toward
the child. At one point on the DVD he asks Matty if he remembers the hot sauce and how it
burned his mouth, and this is suggestive of the past use of hot sauce as a method of punishment.
The behavior witnessed on the DVD would be considered abusive and traumatizing by even the
most conservative standards.
Personal History: Mr. Esmond stated that he was born in Buffalo, New York and that he is the
son of Kevin Esmond and Ann (Hawks) Esmond. He said that his parents were married and then
divorced and subsequently reconciled. According to him, he has three siblings and one
stepsibling and he is the second oldest. Regarding socioeconomic status, Mr. Esmond stated that
the family went from poor to middle class to poor. He recalled that his father was an appliance
technician and that his mother worked in fast food restaurants. He stated that his mother
currently works in quality control. He described his family as dysfunctional and said that he
fought with his older brother. He also stated that he has problems with his younger brother and
sister. He said that, while living in New York state, he was brought up Roman Catholic. He said
that he belonged to a Boy Scout troop when he was a child. He then said that, at the end of
second or third grade, the family moved to New Hampshire. According to him, between the ages
of 10 and 11, he began having problems that included setting fires, fighting, and being kicked out
of school. He also stated that things were worse for him in New Hampshire because he was
picked on.
Asked about child abuse, Mr. Esmond stated that he was physically abused, emotionally abused,
and verbally abused. He stated that he was spanked and that his parents used hot sauce to punish
him, as well as making him sit in the corner. He said that as a younger child he was hit with a
belt. He also stated that throughout his life he has had fistfights with his father. He described
Joey Esmond
Psychological Evaluation
Page 3 of 9
himself as a problem child who caught the brunt of discipline in the family. He stated that it only
made him stronger. He stated that the physical abuse mainly came from his father and that his
mother would generally ground him. Regarding domestic violence, he stated that throughout the
years he witnessed domestic violence and he once saw his mother get her head “busted open”.
He also recalled that at one time his mother put sleeping pills in his father’s food to knock him
out.
Asked about his significant relationships, Mr. Esmond stated that his first relationship was with a
girl named Mindy whom he dated for six months in high school. He also stated that subsequently
he dated a girl named Deanna and they went out for one year in high school before he was placed
in a group home for 11 months for stealing a car. He said that there were a variety of flings until
he met Bethany Wahler at the age of 21. He stated that they were never married and that their
relationship was off and on for five years. According to him, he did everything to make Bethany
happy and had two boys with her. He said, at the time of this evaluation, that the boys were in his
parent’s custody because Bethany filed to give them custody. He stated that they broke up
because she was very abusive, mistreated the children, laid on the couch all day long, and was
constantly “on his case” and abusive. He recalled a time when she threw a six-month-old child
on the bed and yelled at him (Mr. Esmond) in front of the child.
Mr. Esmond stated that his next relationship was with Suzanne, the mother of his four-year-old.
He stated that that child is with his mother and there are no visitation rights currently because of
the allegations being made by his parents. He stated that it was a two-year relationship and they
moved into his parent’s home because they could not afford an apartment. He stated that there
was a lot of stress from his parents and his parents were abusive to Suzanne. He stated that he
then was with a woman named Lela for one year, but they had personal differences and she was
promiscuous.
He stated that his current wife, Mariah, used to talk with him on the computer and they went out
for eight days before they were married. He stated that they were married in August 2006.
According to him, the marriage was good at the beginning and then became rocky and they split
up for two to three months, but are back together. He stated that she has had a restraining order
on him twice and dropped it twice. He said that the allegation was felony assault against Matty.
According to Mr. Esmond, he gave Matty a “light tap” to his mouth, but Mariah said that he
slapped him. He stated that the police said he “assaulted the kid”, but he “left no marks” so it
could not have been an assault. He stated that he got a letter stating that they were not going to
charge him in December 2007.
Asked about domestic violence in his relationships, Mr. Esmond stated that Bethany filed an
allegation of alcohol abuse and domestic violence. He stated that Suzanne used Bethany’s
allegations to accuse him, but the Guardian ad Litem sided with him. He stated that the same
allegations are coming from his parents now, but a DHHS worker in New Hampshire is looking
for records to show that he did not do it. He stated that the allegations of violence are a “he said,
she said” situation and that he is being seen as guilty until proven innocent. He stated that, until
recently, he still had his children, so he could not have been doing anything totally wrong.
Asked about his educational history, Mr. Esmond stated that he was in a group home in
Massachusetts and went through the eleventh grade. He stated that he should have had enough
credits to graduate, but did not. He stated that night school did not work out for him. He stated
Joey Esmond
Psychological Evaluation
Page 4 of 9
that it was not his forte to sit in a classroom for three hours. He said that he might get his GED,
but he does not need it for his work. According to him, his grades “sucked” through life and that
he had attention deficit problems that were never diagnosed.
Asked about his work history, Mr. Esmond stated that he has worked in construction since the
age of 18. He stated that he is a subcontractor for one company and that he builds houses from
start to finish. He stated that he is a good worker with good references, and he has never been
fired from a job. He stated that he has always quit when he has wanted to move on to better jobs.
Mr. Esmond stated that he has never served in the military. According to him, his financial
support currently comes from his self-employment and he has no health insurance, no
entitlements, and a rented home. Asked to describe his hobbies, Mr. Esmond stated that he plays
on the computer, listens to music, and plays cards.
Asked about his medical history, Mr. Esmond stated that he had slight scoliosis at birth, as well
as attention deficit. He stated that he has chronic back pain. Asked to list his medications, he
stated that he takes no more medications. He then added that he is not a “happy camper” because
he deals with a lot of pain.
Mr. Esmond denied any history of psychiatric hospitalization. He stated that he was diagnosed
with Depression at Counseling Services, Inc., but no suicidality has been documented. Asked
about self-harm, he stated that he has a high pain tolerance and so he used to hit street signs
when he was frustrated. Asked about family psychiatric history, he stated that his father and his
younger brother have taken Lexapro.
Asked about outpatient treatment, Mr. Esmond stated that, when he was 15 or 16 years old, he
had counseling for Attention Deficit Disorder. He stated that he has recently had an intake at
Counseling Services, Inc. and that he is going back to see about a diagnosis. Asked about
parenting support groups or classes, Mr. Esmond stated that, when he had custody of the
children, he went through the Kids First program twice. He stated that the judge made him do it
twice.
Asked about substance use or abuse, Mr. Esmond stated that he used to be a heavy drinker and
marijuana smoker. He stated that he smoked a lot of marijuana between the ages of 16 and 17
and that he began using alcohol after the age of 18. He then stated that he hardly drinks at all. He
also stated that he does not currently go out of his way to smoke marijuana. He stated that he
does not do anything much at all now in terms of substance abuse. He did state that he smokes
one pack of cigarettes per day.
Asked about criminal history, Mr. Esmond stated that he has been arrested five times and he has
had a lot of police holds, especially in his early twenties. He stated that he has had three charges
of driving under the influence of alcohol, with the most recent being in July 2007. He also stated
that he was charged with the assault on Matty. He stated that he was arrested with his wife when
they were both arrested for simple assault and they plead to being mutual combatants. He stated
that he is currently not on probation, but he was on probation as a teenager. According to him,
the maximum time he has spent in jail is two to three days at a time. He stated that he currently
has no driver’s license because of the driving while intoxicated charges.
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Asked to describe his social supports, Mr. Esmond stated that his wife is his social support. He
stated that he used to have a best friend, but he does not like his wife. He stated that this friend
was a support for a long time.
Asked if he had anything else to add to the evaluation, Mr. Esmond stated that his children have
been brainwashed because they like where they are placed. He said that they do not have
anything to do with him and do not talk to him.
Mr. Esmond was asked specifically about the DVD showing his abuse of Matty. He stated that
the DVD refers to abuse and shows spanking and threatening. He stated, however, that people
did not know the circumstances of the household. He said that they were constantly being
watched. He also stated that his (Mr. Esmond’) mother made Matty sit in dirty underwear and
put him in the shower. He stated that his father cannot deal with children and he is on complete
disability. He stated that, although his father is on disability, he takes the children out on four
wheelers and drinks and drives. He stated that, at the time of this evaluation, his two older boys
were with his father. He stated that he and his wife have let the DHHS worker know not to allow
the infant, Garvey, to have contact with his paternal grandparents. Asked about his relationship
with his parents, Mr. Esmond stated that he would not be upset if his parents “were burning on
the sidewalk” and, in fact, he would step over them and walk away.
Clinical Impressions: Mr. Esmond is a man who appears to be slightly older than his stated age
and this is likely due to the fact that he has no teeth. (He stated that his teeth were extracted, but
then he lost his insurance and has not been able to replace them.) He is a man of slight build who
appeared for his evaluation reasonably well groomed and casually dressed. He wore a baseball
cap throughout the evaluation. Mr. Esmond is rather tangential in his speech and not particularly
direct in answering questions. He was overtly cooperative with all requests for psychometric
testing and personal information. He was apparently free from intrusive thought and was fully
oriented times three throughout the evaluation process.
Parenting Issues: Parenting attitudes are assessed by means of the interview, the Parenting
Sentence Completion Series, and the parent/child interaction observation.
Asked what he likes most about parenting, Mr. Esmond stated that he likes his kids. He stated
that he likes seeing his kids happy and doing things. He stated that childhood is supposed to be
fun. He stated that the difference in Matty since foster placement has been remarkable.
Asked what he likes least about being a parent, Mr. Esmond stated that he does not like having to
discipline children. He stated that he is strict, but does not go out of his way to spank children.
He stated that it is hard today to discipline children without being charged with assault. He then
went on a rambling tangent about children with guns in school and having more problems with
children today then in the past.
Asked to describe his strengths as a parent, Mr. Esmond stated that parents should make sure
their children are supported financially and emotionally. He stated that he tries to do things with
his children when he gets out of work. He stated that he was very strict with the children and
followed through with punishment, and this meant that he had to be strict for a reason. Asked to
describe his weaknesses as a parent, Mr. Esmond stated that discipline is his weakness. He stated
that some people say that he is too strict, but that is an opinion and everybody has got one. He
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stated that he had it thrown in his face that he needed to work, but then said that the same people
said it was a problem that he did not spend time with his children.
Asked how he handles anger, Mr. Esmond stated that he used to spend a lot of time yelling. He
stated that he has no qualms raising his voice and that arguing has been commonplace in his life
for as long as he can remember. He stated that he blames being screamed and yelled at by his
parents for the way he is today.
Asked about how he handles discipline, Mr. Esmond stated that he would basically use time out.
He stated that children rarely got a spanking. He then stated that he used to use hot sauce on the
tongue, but “apparently that’s abuse these days”. He stated that he never beat on his kids. He
stated that he has used a belt and soap in the mouth, but the child asked to take the belt again
because it didn’t hurt. He stated that there is a fine line on spanking. He stated that you should be
able to spank your child, but not leave a mark on them.
Mr. Esmond was asked to describe his children. He stated that his nine-year-old son, Caleb, is
more “girly”. He described him as prim and proper and said that he does a lot of reading. He
stated that Caleb is into learning things. He also stated that he plays basketball and is in Boy
Scouts and is quite proper and frail. He described him as tall and skinny and not a tough kid. He
stated that he is more apt to cry and is more on the girly side. He also stated that he was told
throughout Caleb’s mother’s pregnancy that he was going to have a girl.
He stated that his seven-year-old son, Danny, is more like him and is short and stocky. He stated
that of all of his children he is more his son and he described him as my “little redneck” and “my
little roughneck”. He described him as sneaky and stated that he is “like me to a T” and that he
likes to play. He stated that he does not have to worry about him because he is a tough little kid.
He described his four-year-old son, Kris, as a great kid, but stated that he has not seen him in
quite a few months. He stated that his mother is training him to be gay. He said that he has quite
a bit of spirit in him, but he is a good child. According to him, his maternal grandfather makes
six figures and so he is prim and proper and a polite child. According to him, he used to like
coming to see his father.
Mr. Esmond described his three-year-old stepchild, Matty, as a child that he would have
described as out of control previously. He stated that he has always been difficult to manage and
the most challenging child to deal with. He stated that Matty did not like authority and he is
absolutely a changed child now. He said that if Matty was like the way he is now when he was
with himself and his wife, they would not have had any problems.
Mr. Esmond described his nine-month-old child, Garvey, as always a happy child who is now
crawling and lights up when he hears his parent’s voice.
As part of the evaluation, Mr. Esmond was asked to fill in the Parenting Sentence Completion
Series. Mr. Esmond used the parenting sentence completions to complain about the way that he
was parented. He described being abused by his parents and stated that he no longer considers
them his parents. He described some rather rigid approaches toward parenting. His sentence
completions overall were unremarkable for any overtly abusive attitudes. The parenting sentence
completions indicate that Mr. Esmond views his parenting style as adequate, and it should be
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noted that the sentence completion series simply indicates a parent’s ability to verbally articulate
parenting concepts.
As part of the evaluation, Mr. Esmond and his wife, Mariah, were observed in a one-hour play
session with Garvey and Matty. Mr. Esmond participated fully in the play session alternating his
attention between Garvey and Matty. He was somewhat aggressive in his play with Matty, at one
point throwing a ball and hitting Matty in the head with it, but not in an angry way. The one-hour
observation session was unremarkable for any abusive behaviors on the part of Mr. Esmond. It
should be noted, however, that a parent/child interaction observation session only represents one
hour in the life of parent and child and, as such, has limited generalizability. It does indicate that
for one hour being observed by a mental health professional, Mr. Esmond was able to be
appropriate with the children.
Psychometric Testing Results: Mr. Esmond was administered the reading subtest of the Wide
Range Achievement Test (WRAT3). His Standard score of 105 indicated the ability to read at the
post high school graduate level. He was thus deemed able to self-administer those tests not
requiring examiner administration.
Mr. Esmond was administered the Kaufman Brief Intelligence Test (K-BIT2). He obtained a
Verbal standard score of 106 (average) with a 90% confidence interval of 99-113. He obtained a
Nonverbal standard score of 105 (average) with a 90% confidence interval of 97-113. He
obtained a K-BIT I.Q. Composite standard score of 107 (average) with a 90% confidence
interval of 104-114. Based on the results of the K-BIT2, Mr. Esmond appears to have an average
I.Q. Cognitive functioning is therefore not a risk factor for child maltreatment in this case.
Mr. Esmond completed the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI-2). His
response style was to exaggerate symptoms and pathology rather extensively. The clinical scale
elevations on this administration of the MMPI-2 are highly consistent with Antisocial Personality
Disorder. In addition to the antisocial aspects of the MMPI-2, Mr. Esmond endorsed a number of
affective problems around anxiety and depression. The relative scale elevations are also
consistent with borderline personality features. Mr. Esmond reports fairly significant ideas of
persecution by others, as well as somatic complaints and low positive emotions.
Mr. Esmond completed the Millon Clinical Multiaxial Inventory (MCMI-III). As with the
MMPI-2, he tended to report a high number of problematic ideas and symptoms. His response
style showed a broad tendency to magnify the level of experienced illness, as well as a
characterological inclination to complain or to be self-pitying. There is reason to believe from
this self-report that at least a moderate level of pathology characterizes his overall personality
organization. His profile suggests the presence of depressive and pessimistic moods, edgy
irritability, and feelings of being cheated, misunderstood, and unappreciated. Likely to be critical
and bitter, he may often feel like a victim, overburdened and mistreated. His personal
relationships are likely to be tenuous and occasionally turbulent, fraught with fights and
antagonism, that may often be provoked by his characteristic guilt inducing, complaining, and
passive-aggressive attitude. Also worthy of attention is his inclination to act thoughtlessly and
irresponsibly and to be generally careless and imprudent, failing to plan ahead or to consider the
legal or ethical consequences of his behavior.
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Mr. Esmond completed the Substance Abuse Subtle Screening Inventory (SASSI-3). His
responses were open and honest, and yielded a valid profile. Based on his responses to this self-
report measure, Mr. Esmond has a high probability of having a substance dependence disorder
with the chief substance being alcohol.
Mr. Esmond completed the Child Abuse Potential Inventory (CAP-I), an instrument that
measures the extent to which the examinee shares characteristics with persons known to
physically harm children. There were significant subscale elevations relative to his feelings of
Distress, Unhappiness, Problems with Children, and Problems with Others. All of these subscale
elevations resulted in a high elevation of the Abuse scale score. An elevated Abuse scale score
indicates that the examinee has an array of personal and interpersonal characteristics that are
similar to characteristics of known physical child abusers. Data indicate that as abuse scores
increase so does the likelihood of physical child abuse, thus high abuse scale scores should be
viewed as very meaningful. People with elevated Abuse scores tend to be immature, moody,
restless, self-centered, evasive of responsibility, and frustrated. In general, they exhibit more
worry, pessimism, and depression. They are more anxious and report more uncomfortable
emotional feelings. Those with elevated Abuse scores tend to be touchy, over reactive, and
irritable with low frustration tolerance, poor impulse control, and easy frustration.
Mr. Esmond completed the Parenting Stress Index (PSI) relative to his wife’s son, Matty
Moreau. His responses were open and honest, and yielded a nondefensive and interpretable
profile. All subscales on the Child domain were significantly elevated, indicating that he views
Matty in a highly problematic manner and has little, if any, attachment to his stepson. On the
Parent domain, all subscales were elevated, with the exception of Mr. Esmond’s relationship
with his spouse, which he reported as being somewhat satisfactory. This indicates highly
problematic parenting. This would be consistent with his blaming of Matty for many of the
family difficulties. The results of this administration of the PSI should be considered quite
alarming and would cause concern in any parenting evaluation.
Conclusions and Recommendations: Based on the psychometric testing, it appears that Mr.
Esmond is a man of average I.Q. Therefore, his intellectual abilities would not be considered
problematic and would not be a risk factor for child maltreatment.
Based on the remainder of the psychometric testing, the personal history, the clinical
impressions, and the records provided by DHHS, it is apparent that Mr. Esmond is a man with
Antisocial Personality Disorder with borderline features. In addition to these problems on Axis
II, he is reporting significant problems on Axis I related to Anxiety and Depression. The testing
and history are also strongly suggestive of Alcohol Dependence Disorder.
With regard to Mr. Esmond’ underlying mood disorder, there is certainly no reason to ignore the
depression and anxiety he is reporting. Whatever psychotropic or psychotherapeutic methods
might be used to ameliorate the depression could improve the quality of his functioning. With
regard, however, to the Axis II personality issues, the prognosis is much more guarded and
complex. With regard to Borderline Personality features, this greatly explains his impulsive and
self-destructive acting out behaviors and his inability to contain himself appropriately with
others. Borderline Personality is best treated with dialectical behavioral therapy (DBT) and Mr.
Esmond would need to apply himself in a painstaking and long-term way to ameliorate the
impulsivity associated with borderline personality.
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Antisocial Personality Disorder is generally resistant to treatment. In fact, studies have shown
that the conventional wisdom of avoiding psychotherapy for persons with Antisocial Personality
Disorder is well founded, given that the antisocial person tends to use the therapy as a way to
hone their antisocial skills. If Mr. Esmond is to attempt any sort of treatment of his Antisocial
Personality Disorder, such treatment would need to be provided by a therapist who is well
trained and highly skilled at treating this disorder. Treatment with an unskilled therapist could
actually exacerbate the antisocial symptoms. Given Mr. Esmond’ long history of conduct
disorder and antisociality, the prognosis for its treatment is not good, and perhaps the best that
one could hope for is that his behaviors are contained in some way by society.
It is obvious from the interview and the history that Mr. Esmond has little insight. One of his
strongest personality characteristics is that he externalizes blame and takes little responsibility
for his actions. At no point in the interview did he take responsibility for any of his actions,
except to say that he was ill equipped to deal with Matty’s behaviors. Even then, however, Mr.
Esmond dealt with his abuse of Matty by vilifying the child, rather than taking responsibility for
his own abusive and sadistic behavior toward the child. At no time did he make the connection
between his abusive and pathogenic parenting and the child’s resulting behavior.
While Mr. Esmond downplayed his substance abuse in the interview, there is evidence to the
contrary. The Substance Abuse Subtle Screening Inventory was indicative of a high probability
of a substance dependence disorder. Mr. Esmond’ movements, speech, and presentation on the
DVD indicated that at one point he was acting intoxicated when dealing with Matty. There is
also the issue of Mr. Esmond’ loss of his driver’s license due to repeated charges of driving
while intoxicated, another strong indicator of alcohol dependence. This overlay of alcohol
dependence is likely to impede any potential progress that Mr. Esmond might make in his
treatment. He is strongly encouraged to seriously address the alcohol issue. It is unclear what Mr.
Esmond meant by “not going out of his way” to smoke marijuana.
While it is not the place of this evaluation to argue whether Mr. Esmond was abused as a child,
the issue at hand is his current pathology and its detrimental impact on his parenting abilities and
the safety of children around him. The best predictor of future behavior being past behavior, and
the fact that Mr. Esmond has done little in the way of effective treatment for his many
psychological issues, makes his unsupervised presence with children highly risky. Since he is in
no way legally related to Matty, the Department certainly has no obligation to reunify him with
that particular child. Given the trauma that he has inflicted on Matty, it would be considered
unwise to allow him any unsupervised contact. Regarding Mr. Esmond’s biological children, it
would be prudent and justifiable for the Department to require supervision if Mr. Esmond is to
have contact with them as well. Given the current level of pathology and out-of-control
behaviors, it is unlikely that Mr. Esmond is capable of being a stable, warm, or empathic
attachment figure to his children, and it is reasonable to assume that children would continue to
be at risk for physical and emotional harm in his care.
____________________________
William Barter, Ph.D.
Licensed Psychologist
Maine License Number PS1141
