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.
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.
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