When Parents Kidnap [Hardcover]

Geoffrey L. Greif (Author), Rebecca L. Hegar (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 9, 1992

What happens when a child is kidnapped from home by his or her own parent? What are the emotional and psychological consequences of living in hiding for weeks, months, or even years for a child? How does the parent left behind cope with having no knowledge of the child's whereabouts or well-being? And what could lead a parent to inflict such a painful existence on his or her own child? This text provides a look at the problem of the abduction of children by their parents, portraying the experiences of both the parents searching for their children, and the abductors who have taken them. The reader is given depictions of life on the run and learn, how children who have been in hiding for months and sometimes years cope with moving from town to town and from school to school, and how reunion with the searching parent affects them. Greif and Hegar set the stage for policy change by identifying five common scenarios that end in abduction, and point out how changes in custody and divorce law could help to eliminate, or to more quickly resolve, abduction of children. Geoffrey Greif has also written "The Daddy Track and the Single Father" and "Single Fathers".

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

The authors, both faculty members of the School of Social Work at the University of Maryland, have written a comprehensive analysis of the burgeoning problem of parental abduction, of which it is estimated there may be as many as 350,000 cases a year in the U.S. alone. Greif and Hegar conclude that abductions usually occur to right a perceived wrong (as in custody decisions), to recapture the love of the other parent, to get revenge or to hold onto someone dear. Thus abductors are of both sexes, take children of all ages (although mostly under five) and keep them for as short a time as a weekend or as long a time as 15 years. The authors address the traumas to the abducting parent, the searching parent, the children, their siblings and the extended family, which is often involved, and suggest ways the incidence of parental kidnapping can be reduced. One of the strengths of this study is the authors' reluctance to generalize, a tendency they believe is inaccurate when studying this volatile subject. Dry, academic prose will probably prevent this valuable book from reaching the wide readership it deserves.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

Although family abduction occurs often in the United States (an estimated 350,000 times annually), only limited progress has been made in addressing this situation. Through questionnaires and interviews with parents, children, and other family members, the authors present a detailed picture of a complex problem. Family members committing abductions fit no single profile; many are nonviolent and believe that they are acting in their children's best interests, though some abductors are violent and vengeful. The authors view the abductor's actions as traumatic to all family members and, generally, not to be condoned. They suggest additional means of combatting family abduction, including helpful services to families at risk, modification of the adversarial "win-lose" approach to settling custody disputes, and swift action to defuse threatening situations. Unfortunately, as the authors suggest, a more intractable problem remains: we have created a society in which families do not stay together. For academic and larger public library collections.
- Carol Lewis Watwood, Western Kentucky Univ. Lib., Bowling Green
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 321 pages
• Publisher: Free Press; 1St Edition edition (November 9, 1992)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0029129753
• ISBN-13: 978-0029129753
• Product Dimensions: 9.5 x 6 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,345,427 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.